ROANOKE, Va. – A mental health group in Roanoke opened its doors on Sunday in the wake of the tragic death of Patrick Henry High School senior Isiah Robinson.
The 18-year-old star athlete, who played both basketball and football, lost his life in a shooting Friday night at the Melody Hookah Lounge. Four others, including a Virginia Tech student, were also injured in the incident.
On Sunday, Motivate The Game offered its support.
Daniel Brooks founded the group with the goal of providing both physical and mental health tools for area athletes, teams and coaches. This weekend, the business broadened its horizons as it opened its doors for three hours to support those impacted by Friday’s deadly shooting.
“It was important for me when these major moments happen to provide support as needed,” Brooks said.
“A lot of times individuals don’t have an outlet or a place to go so we want to create that space, especially for athletes to be able to train, cry or talk if they have to,” he added. “But it was important for me when these major moments happen to provide support as needed.”
The event was specifically put on with the intent of hosting teammates, coaches, friends and family of Robinson.
“The goal here today is to see if we can redirect that energy into individuals being able to move forward. If we can take that grieving energy and apply it, that’s how people live on forever,” Brooks said.
Helping young people understand the cycle of grief is a vital step.
“One of the biggest things is dealing with denial and dealing with that. Then we go to anger, stages of guilt. Those are things we want individuals to be cognizant of. Crying, talking and processing—holding in those emotions can have a more adverse effect on us. Find a professional you can talk with because this is going to hurt,” he said.
For more information on Motivate The Game, click here.
For a previous WSLS story with Motivate the Game and Daniel Brooks, click here.