Walking into a room, mostly filled with complete strangers is intimidating. Some are better than others at coping, putting themselves out there, and becoming acquainted. When I walked into the Botanical Gardens where the Alpha Course has been meeting for the past eight weeks, I felt like I was entering a family reunion.

In 2008, I was diagnosed with Bipolar 1 Mixed Disorder. 30-60% of people with this disorder attempt suicide at least once. I thought about suicide every day for 14 years.

As he continued his pursuit of knowledge, he began reading the Bible to learn more about its foundational influence on Western Culture. Two years later, a significant relationship ended. He found himself profoundly aware of that missing element in his life. He dropped out of grad school and was in a state of poor mental health. Brenton described it as feeling “no sense of purpose or direction in my life.”