As a part of our January Employee Donation Program, $1,000 to benefit Stay; For Life, Advocating Men’s Mental Health and Suicide Prevention

Partners Bank employee Emily Frechette (left) proudly presents a $1,000 check to the founder of Stay; For Life, Angela Whitten (right) as part of the bank’s Employee Donation of the Month program.

Sanford, Maine – Every month, Partners Bank holds an “Employee Donation of the Month” and donates $1,000 to an organization that is near and dear to an employee’s heart. The employee selected for January 2024 is Emily Frechette, and she is choosing to donate to Stay; For Life.

“I picked Stay; for Life because of their mission. There are not enough resources for men in times of need. I also put myself in Angela’s shoes, and one day my son is going to be 18, and I want him to have resources to turn to if needed,” Frechette said.

Stay; For Life is a non-profit organization whose mission is to save lives by advocating for men’s mental health and suicide prevention. The organization was started by Angela Whitten (Stevens) and Donnie Whitten after losing their 18-year-old son Trent to suicide in June 2022. Trent shared with his family that he had been feeling stressed, but he didn’t disclose the extent of his struggle. After grieving for a few weeks, Trent’s mother Angela converted her grief into action and started Stay; For Life.

“I wanted everybody to know that this could have been preventable if men’s mental health was more of an open topic for everybody to talk about and less of a stigma,” Angela Whitten explained.

As a non-profit organization, Stay; For Life relies on generous volunteers who donate their time, effort, or extra funds to support their mission. Partners Bank is proud to support an organization that is helping to break the stigma of men’s mental health. If you want to get involved, visit www.stayforlife.org. You can volunteer, donate, or learn more about how Stay; For Life educates and advocates for men’s mental health and suicide prevention.

If you are having thoughts of suicide and need immediate support, please call or text 988, a suicide and crisis hotline. Youth ages 13-24 who are in a crisis can also text the Teen Support Line at 207-515- 8398 any day between 2-10 PM ET; this text line is staffed by individuals ages 18-24.

About Partners Bank:

Partners Bank was founded in 1933 and is headquartered in Sanford, Maine, with additional Maine branch locations in Springvale, South Sanford, Limerick, Buxton, Waterboro, Wells and York, as well as New Hampshire branch locations in Portsmouth, Rye, and Kingston. Partners Bank is a mutual savings bank that operates solely for the benefit of its deposit and loan customers and is focused on giving back to the communities where it serves. Deposits are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.  Partners Bank is an Equal Opportunity Employer and Equal Housing Lender. For more information, please visit their eBranch at partners.bank, Facebook page at Facebook.com/PartnersBankOnline or call 1-888-226-5747.