Raise funds for suicide prevention - a challenge from Vicky $50 donated

**webmaster** · 10-25-2009, 10:38 PM

Hi gang,

My daughter, Sami, is raising money to support suicide prevention. She lost a classmate to suicide, so this is important to her personally.

As a person who also attempted suicide at one point myself, long ago, this is a cause near and dear to my heart as well.

She needs to raise $1000 before November 14. So far, her pleas to friends and family have only raised $25. I donated $50 today, and I challenge you to help prevent suicide by helping her team raise their goal.

Any amount will do, and every dollar you donate goes to help keep this from happening to other kids (and adults).

So if you can spare a few bucks, please donate!

Click here to donate and thanks!!

**Shanecb** · 10-25-2009, 11:39 PM

I'm in a little bit of a money situation at the moment, so I unfortunately don't have anything to spare, but good luck with raising the money!

**webmaster** · 10-26-2009, 07:37 AM

Thanks, Shane!

**Angus** · 10-28-2009, 05:20 PM

For Nick Ralston, my best friend in school.

**webmaster** · 10-28-2009, 06:04 PM

Thanks Angus! I've been thinking a lot about my husbands' best friend Chuck, who did the car in the garage method, and Patty, my neighbor in high school and good friend, who committed suicide via starvation with anorexia. Took her 3 years to die.....

**Angus** · 10-28-2009, 07:58 PM

It is kind of a sad story, not just because of Nick, but also because of what I did not do: a parable in a way. I knew he was in trouble and needed help. He went off to college when he was 18, but never made it. Instead, he ended up in London on the streets. A month later, he went home, but by then I was in college, so I could not go and see him. I wrote him a letter telling him to come down to Portsmouth and hang out with me until he got his head together, but sat on the letter for a week. No reason, other than just being into my own life. A intended to send it on the Friday, which would have it in his hand on the Saturday morning (First Class mail in England back then took a day). But I did not. On Monday morning, I got a call from my mom telling me he had sat in the garage with a hose from the exhaust....... on Sunday. If I had sent the damned letter on the friday, who knows.

So, two lessons. To those sitting around thinking about doing something to help a friend.....DO IT! Don't wait.

To those who feel they have nobody to turn to. BS! You do. Go to your friends. They may not tell you, but they love you. So reach out to them for help.

Vicky, thank your daughter for me.

Angus

**Dan McFeeley** · 10-30-2009, 09:54 PM

I'm at work right now, in the ER waiting for a social worker to come in for one of our patients so I have a little time on my hands. I'll certainly be logging back on again once I'm home and making a donation.

I work with this on a daily basis, it's what I do for a living. The system needs all the help it can got -- it's overstrained and often inadequate. We've had a lot of funding cutbacks for mental health services in our area recently, clients are often waiting weeks at a time to get in to see the doctor, services with therapists and counselors are limited. There have been many times where we've had to hospitalize a patient for the simple reason that s/he couldn't get in to see the doctor and subsequently got worse.

Give all you can.

**WRATHWILDE** · 11-08-2009, 08:51 AM

Glad to hear your daughter is out there trying to make a difference. I've talked three different friends out of suicide (one of them twice), I had to pull a knife out of the arm of the third. I also had to hold him in a powerful bear hug for the next several hours restraining him, calming him down, and talking him out of it. Every life saved matters.

Donation made.

Cheers,
Jered Talbot (Wrathwilde)

**WRATHWILDE** · 11-08-2009, 09:00 AM

Vicky, I didn't realize you were on the "support me" list... when I saw your name there I just thought it was a list of contributors. My donation went under your daughters name.

Cheers,
Jered

**afdoty** · 11-08-2009, 09:17 AM

So did mine..... Didn't see you there.

**wildoates** · 11-08-2009, 11:26 AM

I used Vicky because Sami's kicking her butt.

**Oskaar** · 11-08-2009, 12:19 PM

Done, I donated under Sami's name just to stir the pot a little!

**TheAlchemist** · 09-23-2010, 09:38 PM

Originally Posted by WRATHWILDE

Glad to hear your daughter is out there trying to make a difference. I've talked three different friends out of suicide (one of them twice), I had to pull a knife out of the arm of the third. I also had to hold him in a powerful bear hug for the next several hours restraining him, calming him down, and talking him out of it. Every life saved matters.

Donation made.

Cheers,
Jered Talbot (Wrathwilde)

...interesting...Those who study Near Death Experiences report that people who have survived an NDE as a result of suicide attempt report that they will NEVER attempt again...