Brandi Carlile Headlines 2014 "Invest in Youth" Annual Breakfast

Youth Eastside Services Annual Breakfast • March 12, 2014
Bellevue, Wash. (January 7, 2014)—You should have taken a long break instead of a long drop from a high place. Ten years I never spoke your name and now it feels good to say it, "You’re my friend again."


With these lyrics, internationally-acclaimed and Seattle-based singer/songwriter Brandi Carlile came to accept and understand a high school friend’s suicide. As the song goes, it took 10 years before she could be at peace and once again enjoy the memories they shared.
Carlile will headline the Youth Eastside Services Invest in Youth Breakfast on Wednesday, March 12, at 7:30-8:45 am at The Hyatt in Bellevue. Her keynote remarks will resonate with the audience and Eastside community, where in the most recent Healthy Youth Survey, one in four Eastside teens reported feeling depressed, and more than one in six high school seniors said they had seriously considered suicide in the previous year. In many of the schools where YES has counselors, these statistics have been revealed in an increased number of suicides in the past two years.  Read More >>



"We really appreciate that Brandi uses her talent and compassion to showcase the often taboo subjects of depression and self-harm," says Patti Skelton-McGougan, executive director at Youth Eastside Services. "We work with young people with thoughts of suicide on a daily basis. Brandi’s willingness to share her experience with us will help bring our community together to work on strategies to stop this alarming trend."

Born in Ravensdale, Wash., Carlile began performing when she was seven years old. Her band, which includes twin brothers Tim and Phil Hanseroth, launched its 2005 debut album on Columbia Records. They have enjoyed groundbreaking success, headlining and selling out major

shows across the globe. Over the last decade her band has released four critically-acclaimed studio albums and has toured extensively across the United States, Europe and Australia.

Carlile and The Twins are firm believers that artists in the public eye have a social and moral responsibility to promote and marry humanitarian efforts with their musical agenda: they have used their success on the road to fund the Looking Out Foundation. Created in 2008, the foundation serves chronically underserved youth through its ongoing philanthropic efforts and involvement with social issues.
Carlile is particularly proud of co-founding the Fight the Fear Campaign, a community-oriented violence prevention initiative. "It really isn't about fighting other people, it's about respecting the fact that you yourself are worth fighting for." This is a powerful message for the young clients of YES and their supporters at Invest in Youth.



Meeghan Black, an Emmy Award-winning broadcast journalist, will emcee Invest in Youth. She has reported on everything from presidential visits and corporate mergers to natural and unnatural disasters. Black has also found herself in many unpredictable and exciting situations as host of KING 5's Evening Magazine and Gardening with Ciscoe.


Youth Eastside Services is a lifeline for kids and families coping with challenges such as emotional distress, substance abuse and violence. Through intervention, outreach and prevention, YES builds confidence and responsibility, strengthens family relationships, and advocates for a safer community that cares for its youth.
Proceeds from Invest in Youth benefit the agency’s Lifeline Fund, which supports underfunded prevention and education programs as well as uncompensated care, ensuring no child is turned away for a family's inability to pay. For information about Breakfast sponsorship and table captaining opportunities, please contact Brooke Wiles at 425.586.2326.



ABOUT YOUTH EASTSIDE SERVICES



YES is a nonprofit organization and a leading provider of youth counseling and substance abuse services in the region. Since 1968, YES has been a lifeline for kids and families, offering treatment, education and prevention services to help youth become healthy, confident and self-reliant and families to be strong, supportive and loving. While YES accepts insurance, Washington Apple Health (Medicaid), and offers a sliding scale, no one is turned away for inability to pay. For more information, visit Youth Eastside Services.