In the course of a day, a group of local mothers solicited enough donations from throughout their community to cover most of the cost of bringing in a renowned internet safety speaker.

Collin Kartchner, of the Salt Lake City area, will speak during assemblies at Caribou County schools on Wednesday, before addressing parents during a free presentation at 7 p.m. at the Gem Valley Performing Arts Center in Grace.

In the morning, Caribou County’s middle school students will head to Grace to hear him speak, and he’ll address high school students in Soda Springs during the afternoon.

“He speaks to teens about social media and the negative influences of social media,” said Georgia Brown, who is the mother of two elementary school students in Soda Springs. “I think a lot of times teens don’t associate the depression and anxiety they’re feeling with the social media they’re consuming.”

Brown has long followed Kartchner on Instagram. She and a few friends attended his presentation on Nov. 4 at Idaho State University’s Stephens Performing Arts Center in Pocatello. Another resident from her community agreed with Brown after the Pocatello talk that it would be worthwhile to bring Kartchner to Caribou County.

In his talks and Instagram posts, Kartchner cites studies linking social media use to anxiety in teens. Many teens associate likes on social media posts with personal worth. Some children become so addicted to their cellphones that they attempt suicide when their phones are taken away from them, Brown has learned from Kartchner.

Brown said children may also be at risk of believing others have perfect lives compared with their own lives when they view other people’s “highlights” online. Online predators also pose a risk, she said.

“I think it’s just that we need to be careful with our kids and that they’re living a completely different life than we grew up with,” Brown said. “I think a lot of times people give their kids a phone and say, ‘Here you go.’”

Kartchner encourages teens to turn off their phones at lunch time and play card games with friends. He also advises children to keep their phones in their pockets and prioritize making actual connections with friends.

Brown said another local mother, Jamie Hill contacted the woman who coordinates Kartchner’s schedule and learned he had an opening. His speaking fee is roughly $8,000 plus travel expenses.

Major donors who helped fund the talks included the Caribou County Commission, which gave $3,000; Soda Smiles, which gave $1,000; and the Nock the Rock Half Marathon, which contributed $1,000. Nock the Rock is a race hosted in Soda Springs to raise funds for suicide prevention.