Taking action to shine light through the darkness

Posted

HURON – Action taken toward a crucial movement made substantial progress in the community on Saturday,  as approximately 260 people participated in Huron’s first “Out of the Darkness” walk for suicide awareness.
The event, which organizers hope to make an annual event took place at Ravine Lake, where participants were united in the vision of diminishing acts of suicide, through raising awareness and funds for mental health advancements.
Joann Smith introduced the movement to the Huron community this year after connecting with Angela Drake, the state chairperson of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP), which is the organization that began the Out of the Darkness walks throughout the nation in 2004.
“When we lost our second son to suicide we were going to do the walk in Sioux Falls,” Smith shared. “So I contacted Angela because she runs the walk there, she said ‘why don’t you do one in Huron?’ and that’s how it happened.”
As there were no registration fees for the event, all the funds were raised through donations, sponsors, plus merchandise and raffle ticket sales, as an impressive amount of $17,595 was reached, far surpassing the $10,000 goal.
Proceeds go toward research studies, developing educational programs to offer essential information to the public of how to detect risk and prevent suicide, plus coping methods and various other forms of support for people who are battling with mental health disorders, as well as those who are affected by loss.
“The generosity and support we have received has been overwhelming,” Drake commented. “I have worked with the organization for two years, after I lost my daughter Brittany two and a half years ago. I have been involved in looking for resources of support for mental health for some time before that. I decided to use the grief I had from my loss to channel hope for others.”
Drake’s parents shared their thoughts on the positivity that was accumulated by the amount of people that attended the walk, “It is impressive to see all the support we got from the Huron area,” said Denis and Terri Drake.
As people prepared to walk around the lake during registration time, there was an opening ceremony conducted by Drake, where she welcomed everyone and offered thanks for their participation in honoring memories of those lost to suicide, while making a difference in the world to fight the 10th leading cause of death in the U.S.

Bead necklaces were given out, in eight different colors - each color representing the various reasons that the public came out to support the cause.
Purple was the color for those who have lost a friend or relative; loss of siblings was sported by the color orange, military or first responders lost were assigned silver, gold represented loss of a parent, losing a child was symbolized by the color white.
Red beads were for those who suffered the loss of a spouse, green was for personal struggles, blue took the role of supporting the cause, while teal beads symbolized family and friends of those with mental health conditions.
Some of the supporters and walkers shared their experiences.  Participant Jade Kerlin explained, “I came to this event because I have two best friends who have depression and suicidal thoughts and I am here to support them and others who struggle.”
Individuals from many different backgrounds and situations who attended the walk on Saturday connected through sharing stories of their various experiences of why supporting the cause and raising awareness is important to them personally.
Joe Turner is a supporter of the cause, and was also the winner of the raffle prize. He said “I walked three laps around the lake,” with each lap representing a different person in his life, who was lost by suicide.  
Another supporter of the movement Gavin Redar shared, “A friend of mine recently committed suicide, and I had no idea he was depressed or suicidal at all, so I came to support the cause and its importance that there needs to be more awareness in order for prevention to be possible.”
Lexie Reilly from Wolsey explained, “Joann’s youngest son Aaron was one of my best friends, which is why I became involved.”
More participants in the walk from Huron shared the experience of losing of 15-year-old family member, Sanden Voorhees, to suicide last year. Sanden’s grandmother Leanne Voorhees said, “There are a lot of young people who need this support, to get help and talk to somebody, otherwise nobody will know what they are going through.”
It was an especially moving event with great importance to many people, in which some much needed hope, comfort and support was offered to the community.
Supporter and participant of the event Michelle Harmdierks said, “It is great to see all the support from the community.”  
Light emerged through the darkness during the event, as every attendee, volunteer, organizer and everyone involved established harmony with each other, by uniting to confront the matter and make a difference in the world by taking action in this movement.
“The walk turned out really well,” Smith said. “I am humbled and amazed by the community support.”
AFSP created the event as an effort to address the agonizing issue of suicide and the rising rates of deaths over the years. Since the walks began, they have grown significantly from less than 25 communities hosting the Out of the Darkness walk in its first year, which has increased to more than 400 communities participating in 2018.
For more information visit asap.org, to learn about AFSP and the events the organization hosts nationwide.

PHOTOS BY ANGELINA DELLA ROCCO/PLAINSMAN
Approximately 260 people who have seen their lives touched by suicide participated in the first “Out of the Darkness” suicide awareness walk at Ravine Lake on Saturday morning.