It was the secret nobody wanted to divulge.

Billy Maxwell Jr. -- the man police say killed his family and then himself Monday -- apparently suffered from mental illness.

Maxwell was a successful businessman, a loving father and an active church member.

He was also -- at least in his final days -- delusional and irrationally fearful, the Rev. John Cook of Snyder Memorial Baptist Church said at a memorial service for the Maxwell family Friday.

Maxwell, 47, killed his wife, Kathy, and their two teenage children -- Connor and Cameron -- inside their home before turning the gun on himself.

Leaders in Cumberland County's mental health community say mental illness can affect anyone, especially the talented, the driven and the successful.

Take Bo Mock, president of the Cumberland County chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, a mental health advocacy and outreach organization.

Mock, a retired major in the Army Reserves who also worked as an insurance salesman, said he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 1993.

Mock said mental illness can be common and often left untreated in high-achievers.

"They'll hide their issues that need to be treated," he said.

In the military, Mock said, it is common to get treated "on the outside" so careers won't be affected by diagnosis and treatment.

Hiding a mental illness is just as common in the business world, he said, because it can be just as damaging to careers.

"It's the labels, the attachments that people make" with mental illness, he said. "It's the way people look at you when they find out."

But mental illnesses are more common than most people know, said Robert Arnold, former president of the Cumberland County chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness -- known as NAMI.

"It affects people all over the world and doesn't discriminate based on age, race or social status," Arnold said. "It can come to everybody."

Still, many people -- especially leaders in the community -- might not seek help for many reasons, said Belinda Davis, director of screening, triage and referral at the Cumberland County Mental Health Center.

The Mental Health Center receives from 75 to 85 calls a day from people seeking treatment for mental health problems, Davis said.

Callers are screened by licensed counselors and referred to behavioral health providers based on their need, she said.

The county has about 27 psychiatrists, 30 psychologists, 50 licensed clinical social workers and 25 licensed professional counselors, she said.

Many of the services require insurance, but some state funds are set aside to pay for enhanced mental health services, such as intensive in-home therapy for families and community support -- things most private insurances rarely cover, Davis said.

But the help can't be received if people don't reach out, she said.

"I would say we have folks on the one hand who do not have the means," she said. "But it can, at times, be just as difficult to say, 'I need help,' even if you do have the means."

Davis said it can be especially difficult for people who have been taking care of others or who are prominent in the community to seek treatment.

"But community leaders need a lot of help and support," she said.

Davis said the Maxwell family's deaths have weighed heavily on her, just as they have the rest of the community.

She says part of the healing process should be for the community to begin to better understand mental illness, whether it is affecting them or their neighbors.

"I would hope that, as a tribute to the lives of these precious people, we could say, 'Hey, I need to talk to somebody,' and in turn, those of us who are here could say, 'I need to listen.' "

"We need to pay attention to each other a little bit more."

Staff writer Jennifer Calhoun can be reached at calhounj@fayobserver.com or 486-3595.

To see more of The Fayetteville Observer, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go
to http://www.fayettevillenc.com/. Copyright (c) 2009, The Fayetteville
Observer, N.C. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For
reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or
847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group
Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.