International Survivors of Suicide Loss Day
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INTERNATIONAL SURVIVORS OF SUICIDE LOSS DAY
November 18, 2017
Event Title: International Survivors of Suicide Loss Day
Date: November 18
Time: 4 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.
Place: Montana State Capitol Building, Rotunda
1301 East 6th Ave, Helena
International Survivors of Suicide Loss Day is the one day a year when people affected by suicide loss gather in their local communities to find comfort and gain understanding as they share stories of healing and hope.
To offer the support and comfort they need to navigate the days, months and years after losing someone to suicide, several local organizations have collaborated to offer Lewis & Clark County’s first Survivor Day on Sat., Nov. 18. The event runs from 4 – 7:30 p.m. in the rotunda of the Montana State Capitol Building.
Intended for anyone touched by a suicide loss, not just immediate family members and significant others, the gathering will feature a screening of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention’s (AFSP) compelling documentary “The Journey: A Story of Healing and Hope,” and the follow-up featurette, “The Journey Revisited.” Helena’s Survivor Day will also include speeches from Rep. Mary Ann Dunwell, along with Helena and East Helena Mayors Jim Smith and James Schell, as well as a resource fair, a Q&A panel of local experts, a luminary lighting and refreshments.
The event is hosted by the East Helena Suicide Prevention & Awareness Coalition, Breathe, Let’s Start a Conversation, the Montana VA Healthcare System, the Awareness Network, Montana Joining Community Forces and Helena High School’s mental health awareness club, HHS Together.
An act of Congress created Survivor Day in 1999. Since then, AFSP has sponsored and supported the event. In 2016, over 350 locally organized events were held throughout the U.S., and around the world. For many loss survivors, attending a Survivor Day event is an opportunity to discover that they are not alone in their experience of losing someone to suicide. For those unable to attend a Survivor Day event in person, AFSP hosts a Survivor Day program online at afsp.org/SurvivorDay.
To learn more about International Survivors of Suicide Loss Day in Helena or to register, visit afsp.org/survivor_day/helena-montana/ or contact organizer Tova Reddick-Starkel at (406) 465-4471 or [email protected] for further details.
MEDIA CONTACT
Tova Reddick-Starkel, Survivor Day Event Organizer (406) 465-4471
Jess Hegstrom, AmeriCorps VISTA, Suicide Prevention
East Helena Public Schools
(406) 830-7439