In a fleeting moment of despair, Benjamin Giovangelo, our beautiful, intuitive, creative, sensitive and loving son, chose to end his life on April 16, 2009, just six days after his 18th birthday. Benjamin struggled with Bipolar Disorder and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) beginning early on in his life, and so did his family, both with him and the stigma of mental illness.

Ben Speaks Louder Than Words was born through his loss and today is a powerful voice in the world for change through the team at Ben Speaks Louder Than Words.

Everyone knows a Ben . . . an at-risk youth in your community.

Together we can support all Ben’s to thrive.

Who is a Ben?

A Ben is artistic, creative, intuitive, sensitive, and highly empathic

A Ben is unique and beats to his/her/their own drum

A Ben is a kinesthetic and visual learner

A Ben is labelled with a mental illness or learning disability at an early age A Ben is a daydreamer and can become easily distracted He or she does not fit the mainstream box – Is a round peg!

A Ben resists control and thwarts authority

A Ben is often medicated early in life

A Ben feels like a misfit and struggles to fit in

A Ben is an easy mark for the bully or becomes one

A Ben often develops a strong inner critic

A Ben tends to self-harm in some way as a teenager

A Ben can become isolated and left out

A Ben often suffers with social anxiety & depression

A Ben is high risk for becoming a statistic TODAY!

A Ben is not broken

A Ben has one or many gifts to bring to the world and if nurtured is a future entrepreneur, out of the box thinker and creator of inventions that could potentially save this planet.

There is a little bit of Ben in all of us! ​

A Ben is NOT broken. A Ben has gifts to bring to the world. There is a little bit of Ben in all of us.