By Amy Byrnes
In life, there are some hard things to talk about, and suicide probably comes in at the top of the list of difficult subjects. Not only is it sad, often there’s a certain element of shame around suicide and mental health disorders.
There is some good news though: According to the Mental Health Association of Monmouth County (MHAMC), the adolescent suicide rate in Monmouth County has dipped. And at the end of last month, Gov. Phil Murphy signed into law a new bill that requires all New Jersey schools to include a mental health component for students in kindergarten through 12th grade.
“Finally, people are starting to have the conversation,” said Wendy DePedro, chief executive officer of the MHAMC.
September is Suicide Prevention Month. Here is a spotlight on a few of the organizations that are getting the conversation started locally through programs and events that are raising awareness about suicide prevention and starting to peel the layers of stigma away from suicide.
THERAPY DOGS CAN MAKE IT BETTER
After Tricia Baker’s teenage son, Kenny, took his life in 2009, his high school’s administration suggested covering his photo in the yearbook with a sticker in the 1,500 copies being delivered to his classmates.
The judgment surrounding her son’s death inspired Baker, who’s based in Mercer County, to create Attitudes in Reverse (AIR), a nonprofit organization whose mission is to create a community of understanding, kindness and empathy through mental health education and awareness.
What makes AIR unique is that Baker and volunteers – who are youth mental health first aid certified – bring pet therapy dogs to every program, which help middle and high school students decompress after the weighty presentation.
To date, Baker has brought her message of the importance of looking out for one another to over 80,000 students across seven states. Each spring, she visits Red Bank Regional High School (RBR) to present “Coming Up for Air” programs. In fact, Suzanne Keller, director of The SOURCE, RBR’s school-based youth services program, was so inspired by Baker’s therapy dogs that she decided to train her cavapoo, Riley, to be RBR’s in-house therapy dog.
In September, AIR will return to RBR with a powerful presentation called “In Their Shoes,” which features about 300 pairs of shoes that represent the number of young people age 10 to 24 who have died by suicide in New Jersey in the last three years.
THE LINK BETWEEN VAPING AND SUICIDE
In recognition of Suicide Prevention Month, the MHAMC will host a program focused on the dangers of vaping and its relationship to suicidal ideation – or suicidal thoughts – Sept. 26 at Rumson-Fair Haven High School. The speaker, Stephen Dewey, Ph.D., will discuss the impact of vaping on the developing brain, which can severely impact mental health. Dewey speaks to school districts throughout the tristate area and his research has been featured on “20/20,” “Dateline” and in The Wall Street Journal.
“We decided to focus on this topic for national suicide prevention month be- cause we feel that scientific information about the impact of vaping is critical to helping teens and their parents understand its dramatic impact on the brain in order to have informed conversations about the use of vapes,” said DePedro.
“The best way to prevent problems from happening is to understand what creates the problems in the first place,” she added.
TAKING A MOURNING WALK WITH STEPHY’S PLACE
Although it’s not geared specifically toward suicide, the second annual Stephy’s Place Mourning Walk through Seven Presidents Park in Long Branch Sunday, Sept. 15 provides an opportunity to remember lost loved ones. Sheila Martello, founder and director of Stephy’s Place, said of the early morning walk, “Whatever you want to do to remember your loved one, that is your day to do it.”
Martello knows grief firsthand – her husband died during the World Trade Center attack on 9/11, and she found tremendous solace in a support group that met on Tuesday mornings afterward. She created Stephy’s Place, a support center for grief and loss, to provide a similar type of outlet for anyone suffering from a loss, including suicide.
Rumson resident Lori Jarck joined one of the support groups for people who lost a loved one to suicide a few months after her son Pierce, 16, took his life. “It nursed us back to life,” said Jarck, who’s often joined by her husband. “It taught me how to live with my grief.”
She’s now begun to volunteer at Stephy’s Place one day a week and is going to begin training next year to become a facilitator. “I just love being there, it gives me so much energy,” Jarck said.
STEPPING INTO THE LIGHT
The Mountains vs. The Seas soccer tournament Sept. 22 in Tinton Falls will feature 12 of the top high school girls soccer teams who will raise money to benefit Into the Light, a group dedicated to suicide prevention and mental health awareness.
Into the Light was founded by sisters Artemis and Sophia Mazzini after their dad died by suicide in 2016. The RBR alums wanted to honor their father’s legacy and remove the stigma of all mental health conditions facing teens and young adults. They’ve developed a program they bring to high schools around Monmouth County and have hosted two walks at Rutgers University that have raised about $118,000 to benefit local mental health organizations.
Prior to the soccer tournament, Artemis and her sister are meeting with the teams individually to talk about the group’s efforts and “valuing the mental health conversation,” she said.
ROLLING 2 ZERO FOR VETS
To bring awareness to the 22 veterans who die by suicide each day, American Legion Post 493 out of Little Egg Harbor hosted a Motorcycle Run in August. The event, Rolling 2 Zero, raised about $54,000 for the veteran advocacy group Ma Deuce Deuce and attracted about 600 participants, according to organizer Sherri Korker.
“People don’t understand it,” said Korker, who lost her mom to suicide in 1985. “There’s so much ignorance out there and people think that they’re weak or selfish.”
She started with a Veteran Suicide Awareness Facebook page a year ago, which now has over 2,200 likes. “It resonated with a lot of people.”
Korker, whose husband is a retired member of the Coast Guard, said she’s had veterans message her on the Facebook page to say, “I was almost one of the 22. This is great.”
If you or someone you know has thoughts of suicide, there are people who want to help. Reach out to the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 1-800-273-8255 or Text HOME to 741741 to contact a trained crisis counselor. A confidential and anonymous helpline for New Jersey’s youth and young adults called 2nd Floor can be reached at 1-888-222-2228.
