Brought to you by WBIW News and Network Indiana
Last updated on Friday, April 4, 2014
(MITCHELL) - The third annual Out of the Darkness Campus Walk will take place Saturday at the Mitchell High School track.
Registration will be from 11 a.m. to noon.
The walk will be from noon to 2 p.m. Registration and/or donations may be made at the walk or online at afsp.org by clicking on "Campus Walks" and by locating the Lawrence County (Mitchell) Campus Walk site.
Donna Pruett, Chairwoman of the Lawrence County Suicide Prevention Coalition, is hoping for a record turnout and said that more than 70 Mitchell High School students have registered to walk as a group, wearing gold and blue in memory of two recent MHS graduates whose lives were claimed by suicide this past year.
Walkers may receive a free T-shirt by raising a minimum of $100 in support of their walking efforts.
The walk will take place even if it rains. There will be free handouts available from the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP), along with several door prizes donated by local businesses which will be distributed throughout the walk by volunteers.
Funds raised by the Out of the Darkness Walk help bring research, education, advocacy and survivor programs to Lawrence County.
Pruett says, suicide claims more than 38,000 lives each year in the United States. Nearly three quarters of those who die from suicide in Indiana are between the ages of 25 and 64, according to state statistics on suicides.
Suicide risk factors are a result of biological, psychology, environmental, social and/or cultural factors, according to information provided by Pruett.
Protective factors include receiving effective mental health care; positive connections to family, peers and community; social institutions such as marriage and religion; and problem-solving and conflict resolution skills of the individual and the person's supporters.
If you suspect someone you know may be at risk for suicide, take it seriously, ask questions, encourage professional help, take action and follow-up with the individual, Pruett said. In addition, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 1-800-273-TALK(8255) is available 24/7 or online at suicidepreventionlifeline.org.
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