Lehua Wright is no stranger to depression. The 38-year old yoga instructor and co-owner of Power Yoga Hawaii lost her father to a massive heart attack when she was 19 years old. Six months later, on Christmas Eve, her mother committed suicide.

Devastated by the unexpected loss of both parents, she fell into depression, resulting in some bad choices. Yoga was one of the things that helped bring balance into her life. "It helped me to be happy," she said.

Wright’s personal experiences are the driving force behind "Poses emPOWER," a daylong yoga festival Saturday designed to raise awareness of depression, youth bullying and teen suicide. Seven classes, most accompanied by music, will be held throughout the day on the Sunset Pool deck at The Modern Honolulu in Waikiki.

Wright said that when her mother died, she told others she was killed in a car crash, which wasn’t entirely untrue. "My mother said she was going to the grocery store. But she left her purse and everything else behind and drove off a cliff. She was missing for four days. They found her car at the bottom of a cliff in Kauai," she explained.

"I could see the signs of her depression but didn’t know what she was going through. She was dealing with my father’s death. She was so concerned about what other people thought that she completely disregarded what was going on inside of her," Wright said. "It took me a long time to come to terms with it … took me a really long time to be able to talk about it."

Only after completing her yoga instructor certification at age 30 did Wright feel comfortable sharing her story.

"The physical body stores things and emotions. The yoga poses open up areas like the spine and chest so the emotions can be released. That’s why some people cry at yoga," she said.

Power Yoga Hawaii has hosted smaller charity events at its studio, but Wright wanted to do something on a larger scale. "The Modern Honolulu donated the space, and 100 percent of the proceeds will go to Mental Health America of Hawaii," she said.

Marya Grambs, executive director of Mental Health America of Hawaii, said suicide is a major issue for isle teens. "We have the highest rate in the nation of middle school students that are planning or attempting suicide," she said. And Hawaii high school student numbers aren’t lagging far behind.

"We’re hoping the event raises awareness … makes people look for the signs. Otherwise these teens are suffering in silence."