Parents honor late Forward Township dancer with Ohio State mental health endowment
William Gasch shined on stage while growing up in Forward Township, training with the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre before graduating from Schenley High School in Pittsburgh as part of the theater’s preprofessional program.
The Seneca Valley graduate and accomplished ballet dancer died in 2021 of an accidental drug overdose following an extended struggle with mental health issues.
To honor their son’s life and to help others facing mental health challenges and addiction, his parents — Laurie Kirsch and Rodney Gasch — created The William L. Gasch Endowment Fund to Promote Mental Wellness that will support the Early Psychosis Intervention Center (EPICENTER) at Ohio State University.
Rodney Gasch said his family often encountered barriers while trying to find coordinated care for their son.
“We wish something like the EPICENTER had existed for our son,” he said. “As a family trying to understand and deal with mental illness and addiction, we hit roadblock after roadblock with providers who wouldn’t, or couldn’t involve the family and other professionals in treating William’s challenges. By the time of William’s death, he had experienced a dozen different treatment programs, with little or no coordination between them and few tangible results.”
The EPICENTER was established to diagnose and treat mental health challenges through a coordinated, team-based approach.
According to its website, it’s one of the largest psychosis programs in the nation and provides an extensive range of therapies delivered by a multidisciplinary team of experts in psychology, psychiatry, nursing and social work.
In an Ohio State Wexner Medical Center article, founder and director Dr. Nicholas Breitborde said the facility is intended to be both practical and affordable for patients.
“In that first six months of care, on average, we shave off between $16,000 to $20,000 per person in the cost of their mental health care,” he said at the time.
It’s why supporting the EPICENTER and its mission is vital to preventing similar tragedies, Kirsch said.
“It was so refreshing to learn about the EPICENTER approach of early mental health intervention, involving a team of different professionals working closely with family members,” said Kirsch, who is an Ohio State graduate. “Another great attribute of the EPICENTER is that while they are located on Ohio State’s main campus in Columbus, they partner with community mental health centers bringing this comprehensive treatment model to towns across the state.”
The couple’s son was a staple at the Benedum Center in the Pittsburgh Cultural District with more than 100 performances, including several years starring as the young Nutcracker Prince in the holiday favorite “The Nutcracker.”
He also performed with the Cincinnati Ballet, the Nashville Ballet and the Milwaukee Ballet. He graduated from the University of Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music.
His professional career, however, was cut short by bouts of anxiety, depression and psychosis.
Kirsch said the family hopes the endowment will help spare others moving forward.
“We are confident that by establishing this endowment in William’s memory, we will help other mental health sufferers and their families find treatments that will prevent the pain and loss our family experienced,” she said.
