Mental Wellness Fair turns to kids, phones and social media

The Town of Wake Forest holds its fourth annual Mental Wellness Fair on Saturday, September 26, 2026, from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Wake Forest Renaissance Centre, 405 S. Brooks St. in downtown Wake Forest. This year’s program is built around kids, phones and social media, with a teen-led breakout session and a closing panel titled “Plugged In: Conversation about Kids, Technology & Mental Health,” according to a town release dated September 22, 2026.

The fair is free and open to the public. The town encourages preregistration through an online form but does not require it, according to the event page. Commissioner Nick Sliwinski leads the effort, and the town says the fair aims to raise awareness about mental wellness and share information on programs, services and resources for people helping a loved one through a mental health challenge. Questions go to Andrew Brown Jr., the town’s community outreach manager, at 919-435-9466 or abrown@wakeforestnc.gov.

What happens and when

The afternoon runs on a set schedule, according to the town release:

• The fair opens at 1 p.m. with more than 30 vendor advocates covering depression, suicide, holiday grief, veterans’ services and general wellness.
• From 1:45 to 2:30 p.m., two interactive breakout sessions run at the same time.
• One breakout is a teen-led session on “Social Media Burnout.”
• The other breakout introduces “Well Check Wednesday,” which the town describes as a free weekly movement that asks people to pause midweek, check on their own mental and physical health, and reach out to support someone else.
• From 3 to 4 p.m., the main panel, “Plugged In: Conversation about Kids, Technology & Mental Health,” closes the day.

The Wake County Youth Health Council takes part in the main panel and in one of the two breakout sessions, the release says. The council is a volunteer leadership group for rising ninth through 12th graders run by Wake County Public Health, where young people help shape conversations and actions around public health, according to the county’s page on the group. Members work on community projects and meet bimonthly throughout the year.

Screenings, cooking and police units

Beyond the sessions, the town lists several other features for the afternoon:

• WakeMed will give free blood pressure screenings.
• NC State Cooperative Extension will lead a healthy cooking demonstration using produce from the Ripe for Revival Mobile Market.
• The town will serve free refreshments and snacks while supplies last.
• The Wake Forest Police Department will display two community resource vehicles, its Opioid/Drug Use unit and its Mental Wellness unit.
• Crisis Intervention Officers from the department will be on site.

The police department explains its role on the town’s Focus on Mental Wellness page: “Mental health is a critical part of public safety.” The department says acknowledging mental health concerns openly reduces stigma, strengthens trust and gives people safer ways to seek help.

How the fair started

The fair is the largest piece of a town initiative called Focus on Mental Wellness. The town says on that page that the initiative began with community feedback and is a years-long look at mental wellness issues, with workshops, fairs and training sessions meant to raise awareness and share resources for people living with untreated or undertreated mental illness. The town gives five reasons for the work:

• Overall well-being for residents.
• Public health.
• Productivity and economic development.
• Community cohesion.
• Prevention and early intervention before problems grow.

The first fair, billed as the Mental Wellness & Self Care Fair, ran Saturday, October 21, 2023, from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Renaissance Centre with Sliwinski as its lead, according to the town’s fair archive. The town has also held related events between fairs. It partnered with Wake County on a workshop called “Clearing the Air: Navigating COVID-19, Tobacco Cessation & Vaping Realities” on Thursday, February 15, 2024, at the Renaissance Centre, and a team of town staff walked with Wake County Northern Regional Center staff in the 2024 NAMI WalksNC to raise money and awareness, according to the Focus on Mental Wellness page.

Last year’s third annual fair, held Saturday, September 27, 2025, drew about 300 people and more than 30 vendor advocates, according to the town’s archive. Its panel, led by Symone Lyles, a clinician in UNC’s Mental Health and Performance Psychology Department, took up the mental health pressures on athletes and their families, according to a Central Pines Regional Council post on the event. The panelists were Karen Pustulka, an occupational therapist from WakeMed; BJ Daniels Jr., a former NFL quarterback who is director of partnerships and strategic growth at Evara Health; and Eric and Terry Murray, the parents of PGA golfer Grayson Murray, who died by suicide in 2024. The 2025 fair also offered free haircuts, a mobile market selling fresh produce, meat and eggs, and breakout sessions on mindfulness led by Cedar Oaks Clinic, the archive says.