YORK COUNTY, Pa. — A York County organization and its founder were recognized on a huge scale on Wednesday.
Matt Dorgan, the founder of suicide prevention group Building Bridges for Brianna, won a National Jefferson Award.
Cheers erupted from family, friends and community members after Dorgan was announced as the winner of the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Award during a virtual ceremony on Aug. 28.
The community service award has been given out to just five people across the United States every year since 1974 through the Jefferson Awards. Dorgan says this is all about the people who have supported him.
"I don't deserve this award, the community does and that's what's happening, we're finally breaking the stigma," he told FOX43. "[Suicide is] being talked about on a national level openly with thousands of people watching. That's exactly what needs to happen so we can save more lives."
Dorgan was named the local Jefferson Award winner in February, after garnering thousands of votes from community members.
Dorgan started the organization after losing his daughter, Brianna, to suicide in 2020. Since, he and the Building Bridges team have helped community members in a mental health crisis get therapy immediately and funded suicide awareness and prevention programs.