Boys Town Nevada is using its 35th-anniversary gala to raise money for youth mental and behavioral health programs statewide. The Impact Gala is set for Friday, Oct. 23, from 6 to 10 p.m. at M Resort Spa Casino in Henderson and will honor Mark Davis, owner of the Las Vegas Raiders and Las Vegas Aces, for his work to expand access to mental health resources across Southern Nevada.
The celebration, called Impact Gala: Team Up for Mental Health, brings together community leaders, philanthropists and advocates focused on improving youth mental health outcomes in Nevada, according to organizers, as reported by FOX5 Las Vegas. The evening includes a luxury tailgate experience, a seated dinner and an overtime after-party, a format that echoes the organization's own description of a high-energy tailgate reception, an elegant main program and a lively after-party for the milestone celebration, according to Boys Town Nevada.
Gala chairwoman and Boys Town Nevada board member Debra March said the organization has spent 35 years working with children and families facing mental and behavioral health challenges. She described the anniversary event as a way for the community to recognize that work and support children and families, according to FOX5's report.
Why Davis Is Being Honored
Davis has demonstrated an ongoing commitment to youth and efforts to expand access to mental health resources across Southern Nevada, according to the same account. Funds raised at the gala will support children's mental and behavioral health therapy, in-home intervention and family support programs, behavioral support and training for educators and students, autism assessments and specialized care, and crisis response and suicide prevention services.
Major sponsors for the evening include the Las Vegas Raiders and NVISION360, with additional sponsorship from the Gene Haas Foundation, Westgate Las Vegas, the Las Vegas Aces and Zoox. Community supporters include Intermountain Health, Findlay VW, Nevada State University, Carson Wealth and UNLV, the article notes. Boys Town Nevada says tickets and sponsorship opportunities remain available ahead of Friday's event.
Nevada's Mental Health Gap
Nevada ranks among the lowest states in the nation for access to mental health care, per Boys Town Nevada. That assessment lines up with separate findings from Nevada Current, which reported the state ranked 51st in youth and overall mental health metrics in 2025 and 49th in adult mental health metrics. The outlet also found Nevada has just one mental health professional for every 400 residents.
Estimates of how many Nevada youths go without care vary by source. Nevada Current reported that about 23% of Nevada youth experienced at least one major depressive episode in the year covered by its report, compared with less than 19% nationwide, and that nearly 60% of those youths did not receive mental health services, compared with 51% nationwide. A separate UNLV event description put the figure at nearly one in four youths ages 12 to 17, or 23.5%, and said 73% of those who experienced a major depressive episode did not receive treatment, according to UNLV. The underlying data points come from different reporting periods and definitions, but both paint a picture of widespread unmet need.
Suicide remains a significant concern statewide. In 2023, 654 people in Nevada died by suicide, including 400 in Clark County, where the suicide rate fell 11% to 16.7 per 100,000 people, according to KNPR.
What State Data Shows About Youth Mental Health
Nevada's Department of Health and Human Services reported that Clark County high school students' self-reported sadness or hopelessness, suicidal thoughts, plans and attempts decreased from 2019 to 2023, according to its 2024 Clark County Behavioral Health Epidemiologic Profile. The state describes the Youth Risk Behavior Survey as a biennial, anonymous and voluntary survey of students in grades 9 through 12, so its findings capture students' reported experiences rather than clinical diagnoses. These school-survey trends measure different things from the major depressive episode and treatment-gap estimates cited above. On crisis response, the Washoe County Children’s Mental Health Consortium's 2024 annual report said organizations provided mobile crisis services statewide, but none were then dispatched through the 988 call center. The report also noted a school-based effort: the Washoe County School District had implemented the Signs of Suicide program across all its middle and high schools, according to the consortium's report.
Five Years of Services Statewide
Boys Town Nevada, which opened in 1991 and is headquartered in Las Vegas, says it served more than 4,500 children last year and reached more than 200,000 lives statewide over the past five years. The group provides therapy, crisis support, parenting resources and autism care to children and families. Its Behavioral Health Clinic offers outpatient services for families with children ages 2 to 18 experiencing social, emotional, academic or behavioral concerns.
Boys Town Nevada reports that over the past five years its Behavioral Health Clinic delivered 16,657 mental health sessions, completed 239 autism assessments and provided evidence-based therapy to 1,655 children. The organization's LIFT program reached 186,828 students, managed caseloads for 21,148 students, trained 8,498 teachers and supported 98 schools during that period. Boys Town Nevada also says its connection to the National Hotline answered 3,288 contacts from Nevada over five years, with 55.1% related to suicide or mental health concerns; the hotline can be reached at 800-448-3000.
A Growing Local Fundraising Trend
Friday's gala follows Boys Town Nevada's 30th-anniversary celebration, which drew hundreds of longtime supporters, donors and friends to the Keep Memory Alive Event Center in downtown Las Vegas and helped raise more than $200,000 for the organization's programs and services, according to Boys Town Nevada. Youth mental health has also become a focal point for other Southern Nevada institutions tied to professional sports: the Raiders Foundation's second annual Silver & Black Gala, presented by Intermountain Health, drew nearly 1,000 attendees and raised $3 million for youth mental health initiatives across Nevada, according to Raiders.com. That event included a surprise $1 million donation from the Raiders Foundation to four Nevada-based organizations, including Boys Town Nevada, and an auction item — a private dinner with Davis, Tom Brady and Charles Woodson — that sold for $300,000.
Organizers say the Impact Gala also aims to draw attention to rising rates of stress and anxiety, the impact of social media, and the necessity of early intervention for young people. With Davis set to headline the evening as honoree, Boys Town Nevada is positioning the 35th-anniversary celebration as both a tribute to its own history and a push to close gaps in care that advocates and state data alike describe as severe.
