About Anthony

Message from Anthony

When I was growing up I was bullied so bad that I had to move schools. I used self-harm to cope with my experiences from that event as a 5th grader. I went over to Kingsbury Country Day School in Oxford. A private school that only had six other students in my class. Although this school probably saved my life, and boosted my education immensely, I never learned about Mental Health or Coping Skills. I would go on to attend a pretty normal life in high school until my junior year. I was a varsity wrestler and on a 20 match win streak with a pretty optimistic path for a college scholarship. I was also an honor roll student who took AP classes. My junior year I suffered a traumatic injury from a wrestling match and life at home was very unstable. I attempted suicide three times over the course of just 4 quick months after using self-harm, alcohol, and drugs to cope with my depression, anxiety, and stress that came from these awful events in my life. After my last suicide attempt, which was an overdose on alcohol and Vicodin, I remember waking up and saying “It’s never going to be this way again”. 

Ever since that day I have used Magic and stories from my personal experiences to teach people about Mental Health in a way that’s easily accessible and comfortable. When I was 18 years old I started to work with Common Ground, a crisis and resource center, to share my story around Michigan at schools, meetings, and conferences. Ultimately this lead to my great life I have now as a touring Speaker and Magician! 

I remember the CEO of Common Ground, Tony Rothschild, said to me I had to use Magic in my presentations about Mental Health and Suicide prevention for the rest of my life because it was my true calling. He helped me develop my straitjacket and chains presentation that I use to end every keynote. Tony ended up passing away from cancer and I would end up giving them presentation at his memorial service at Wayne State University to commemorate his life. I still think about Tony and the huge impact he had on Suicide Prevention in Michigan every day.

Now, as of August 28, 2021, I am 26 years old. I have presented and traveled all over the world with my presentations trying to reach people who are struggling from anxiety, depression, stress, and suicidal symptoms. I have trained entire military bases on Suicide Prevention, visited thousands of schools (who bring me back often) letting students know they have the tools to accomplish anything they need, and even partnering with organizations like The Children’s Hospital and US Army to bring my presentations and workshops to those who are looking to improve their community’s quality of life. There’s nothing unique about our trauma, our anxiety, or our depression and we don’t do enough to educate people about how to cope or react to these situations and experiences. 

Also, I did this thing where I opened for the biggest names in the entertainment industry like Jim Gaffigan, The Impractical Jokers, The Chainsmokers, America's Got Talent winners, and I have performed pretty much all over the world. Turns out dreams can still come true even after we hit our lowest points in life.