Sabrina Hoover

Sometimes you do not see the signs. Sometimes you recognize but do not know what to do. I never thought that I would know someone who would commit suicide and now I have known two. I wonder if there was something I could have done or said that would make their decisions change. When I notice the signs how can I reach out to that person?

This past March a close family friend’s son committed suicide. I wondered if there was anything that I could do. To see the family go through so much pain was heartbreaking. How do I help them heal? Then one day the family friend approached me with an option to participate in the Out of the Darkness Community Walk. I agreed right away.

As I am standing in line registering, I’m listening to a young girl who just recently graduated from high school. She speaks of her friend who committed suicide and then 6 months later another friend. She tells her story as she is presenting beads. I have seen people wearing Mardi Gras beads. I figured they collected them from a party or visited New Orleans. But I was wrong.

Each color represents the loss of a spouse or significant other, a parent, a child, friend or relative. I think back to all the individuals that I have seen wearing beads such as these and now I know. I know their pain and I know that there is a way that I can connect with a community that understands. They wear these beads in support of their lost loved ones. It tells us that there are programs that we can engage in to help these people.

Now I wear these beads on the days of remembrance to show support and let people know that they too can reach out.

Do you know someone that could benefit from becoming part of this group?

Photograph Credit:
Sabrina Segal