After a dark period in his life, Kevin Dedner took matters into his own hands when he felt the need to take control of his mental health.

Dedner launched Hurdle in January 2018, a digital mental health platform focused on providing mental health services and self-care support to people of color. Dedner fully committed to the company in June 2018, with the goal of providing the Black community with greater access to digital mental health services.

This mission became even clearer for Dedner when the public health crisis hit last year, followed by the social unrest following the death of George Floyd.

“We have an explicit focus on Black people, and Black people are being hit the hardest by the pandemic,” Dedner told Lifewire in a phone interview. “We see a clear demand in the market for our services, so this year is all about how we can move the business forward and how quickly we can do that.”