Out of the Darkness

You may find this hard to believe, but I made a friend at James Madison.  This friend happens to be a girl (yes, I have even spoken with many.)  My friend Shaylee and I both studied accounting, so we shared a few classes.  We worked on a couple of projects together, spent some weekends partaking in malty beverages, and generally enjoyed the company of one another.  Shaylee had a younger sister who, unbeknownst to me, was in the thros of a difficult battle with depression throughout my friendship with Shaylee.  When we graduated from JMU's Masters Program and left JMU in the summer of 2010, we temporarily parted ways, only to be reunited in the DC-Metro area by one of our old past times - we are suckers for those malty beverages.

A couple of months later I received a facebook invitation from Shaylee to participate in an Out of the Darkness Community Walk - an organization that raises money for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP.)  After looking further into the invitation, I discovered that Shaylee's younger sister took her life in August of 2011 after struggling and suffering with depression.  As the youngest child in a family of four children, I immediately sympathized with my friend, and could only imagine the pain that losing a sibling to such a tragic event had caused her.  After reading about the charity, I jumped at the opportunity to join the upcoming 5k walk at the DC Tidal Basin and support my friend.  I set a goal to raise $100 for the cause, and would appreciate your contributions to my efforts - click here to donate in my name.



Founded in 1987, the AFSP is dedicated to preventing suicide through the research, education, advocacy, and reaching out to those affected by mental disorders and others impacted by suicide.  A core belief and founding principle of the AFSP is that only a concerted group effort would help fund the research necessary to make progress in the prevention of suicide.  More than 36,000 people in the United States die by suicide each year.  A common misconception is that suicide is a reactionary action in response to a single event or set of circumstances, when in actuality, the dynamic is much more complex on a case by case basis.  As a result, the approach we take to suicide prevention must be multi-faceted and complex.  Some of the major initiatives the AFSP is taking include research into the clinical, neurobiological, legal, and psychosocial aspects of suicide.

The AFSP site goes into a much greater detail on a whole slew of topics including facts and statistics, research grants, educational resources, suicide prevention projects, surviving suicide loss, and more. 

Please help Shaylee and I to raise money for this cause.  If you are up for it, come to the walk at the Tidal Basin in DC on 10/29/11.  Thank you for all of your support.