Doneley Meris, MA, CT, Center CARE, Mental Health and Social Services Department, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Community Center; HIV Arts Network, 208 West 13th Street, New York, NY 10011, 212-620-7310, doneley@gaycenter.org

This presentation identifies the multiple death losses of 14 to 20 year old gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (LGBT)and questioning adolescents and young adults in a performing arts high school as they participate in a "mental health-grief-wellness" community forum and a limited grief support group. Devastated by HIV/AIDS, violence, sexual and substance abuse, suicide and other human calamities, these youths articulate their determination to develop encouraging strategies to sustain their educational and artistic goals, preserve their quality of life, and maintain their remarkable survival skills.

Learning Objectives:

• Describe the challenges faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) and questioning adolescents and young adults as they make sense of the multiple deaths that impact on their young lives.
• Provide a framework for mental health and bereavement education professionals to acknowledge the death losses of LGBTQ adolescents and young adults and begin to incorporate these concerns into school service delivery systems.
• Provide supportive strategies and concrete program plans that can accommodate the mental health and grief concerns of LGBT adolescents and young adults within educational and other unconventional learning settings.

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.