Parkland looks beyond therapy to reach teens after suicides

PARKLAND, Fla. (AP) — Days after the suicides of two student survivors of the Parkland school shooting, community leaders were frantically putting extra services in place Wednesday to try to connect with those hard-to-reach students who are averse to traditional therapy.

A local nonprofit had planned to open a teen wellness center near Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on April 30, offering free activities like karaoke night, yoga, kickboxing and acupuncture for students who weren't interested in talking to a therapist. But Eagle's Haven opened ahead of schedule Monday to address emergency needs of students and their families.

"One teen just wanted to cry yesterday and didn't want to talk. Another teen wanted to tell his story about the actual shooting," said Julie Gordon, a licensed therapist and program director of Jewish Adoption and Family Care Options, the nonprofit behind Eagle's Haven.

The first Parkland suicide took place March 16. Cara Aiello told WFOR-TV her 18-year-old daughter Sydney had suffered from survivor's guilt — her friend, Meadow Pollack, died in the attack. Coral Springs police Officer Tyler Reik confirmed Monday that a Stoneman Douglas sophomore apparently killed himself Saturday, but officials were still awaiting autopsy results. The boy's name was not immediately released.

The newly opened wellness center in a nondescript, mostly empty office space offered cookies, fruit and coffee for those who want just to check it out until they start holding after-school activities. The students are on spring break this week, making reaching them outside a central location more difficult.

In the aftermath of the Valentine's Day shooting that killed 17, well-intentioned therapy groups have struggled to get traumatized students in the door. Some feel re-traumatized talking about it; some only want...