BROWARD COUNTY, Fla. – This week on Mom to Mom, Local 10’s Nicole Perez spent time with a mother who turned her tragedy into something positive, after her son and his father lost their battle with mental health.
Expression through art is what Christina Odell calls Operation You Matter.
Christina Odell started the organization after losing one of her sons and his father to suicide.
“I lost my son. He was a former student at West Broward High School. He passed away Oct. 15, 2020. He lost his battle with mental health. After that happened, I knew I had to keep going. I knew that I had a calling for helping teens through their mental health struggles,” said Christina Odell.
She has devoted her life to advocating for mental health, especially in young lives.
“It’s such a silent battle obviously I had no signs for my own son and I’m his mom you know. So just be able to bring kids together through art through art therapy. I’ve always had a passion for art,” said Christina Odell.
Once a month the group gets together for an event. On a Saturday morning, the group met at Coley’s Pizza in Pembroke Pines, a pizza shop near to Christina Odell’s heart, where her son Bradley used to work.
“Our relationship, we were always together, we were never apart. So, it was kind of hard when he passed, because with him I was never really like alone. I always had someone to talk to or spend time with and now it’s kind of like different. It’s different,” said Sean Odell.
Nicole sat with Sean Odell, who is 15 and a youth ambassador. He lost his brother at the age of 13 and told Nicole that the empty feeling of not having Bradley around never really goes away.
“I really don’t like the way that I handled it because I kind of shut down. I was always just taking my anger out on my parents and people who didn’t deserve it. If he was here, I would probably tell him that I love him,” said Sean Odell.
With time, Sean and Christina have found a community through loss. The teens gathered at the table that day have become family.
“You can’t help but feel like you’re a burden to someone who hasn’t experienced that type of loss especially in the beginning when it’s so fresh. Finding support groups who have been through what you have been through is a huge motivator. I’ve made some amazing friends out of those groups as well,” said Sean Odell.
19-year-old Brock Butler is also part of the group.
“I’ve never seen a heart for the youth community like I have with Christina, period,” said Butler.
Butler said he’s developed such a close bond with Sean, he plans to be in his life forever.
“I personally don’t have a younger sibling and my entire life I’ve prayed that God would send me someone that I could press into, love, mentor and then this kid came up and it’s been a true gift. It helps because I’m a guy who doesn’t have the patience to sit down and focus on something. Art has helped me slow my mind down, focus on something and be okay with just being still,” said Butler.
Daniel Reguero is also part of the group, and he opened up about some family struggles hi is going through.
“I have told Christina so much about my life. I haven’t told anyone else, and I think that’s one of the biggest things. I love about what she’s doing now. It allows not only adults, but younger kids to be able to express themselves. When they are not comfortable talking to their parents, they have someone else to go to an environment they are comfortable to speak to peers about,” said Reguero.
And it’s not just voicing thoughts and concerns, at Operation You Matter, if you don’t feel like speaking, you don’t have to.
“Everybody gets a journal I write a message with my contact info and crisis line. So, they feel connected at all times. Writing in a journal allows me to be there not just for myself but to be able to I guess express what I want with my life. Mental health is a silent battle it really is and it’s a day-by-day battle. You could feel good one day, not good the next and so it’s important to be in tune with yourself and reach out to Operation You Matter or anybody, just to feel that community, feel connection and take care of yourself it is a form of self-care. Using creativity, it’s really important especially for young kids,” said Christina Odell.
Christina told Nicole she wants to help as many kids as possible. Her dream is that Operation You Matter will become the mental health program utilized in all South Florida schools.
For more information about Operation You Matter, click on this link.
For those facing mental health challenges or coping with suicide loss, help is available. The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline provides 24/7 support, along with 211 in Broward and Miami-Dade counties.
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