Suicide Awareness walk set for Thursday

Local mental health providers are holding a walk Thursday to raise awareness of and to remember people who have died from suicide.

The Second Annual Hill County Suicide Awareness Walk will begin at 7:30 p.m. at the clock tower in the quad behind Cowan Hall at Montana State University-Northern.

Participants will walk from the clock tower to 11th Street and then to the east part of the campus and back to the clock tower.

The event is organized by the Hill County Mental Health Local Advisory Council.

Amber Spring, a counselor with student support services at Northern and one of the event's organizers, said easy access to guns, social isolation and lack of support services that comes from living in remote areas along with a lack of mental health providers contributes to Montana leading the nation in suicides. She said that in Montana, discussion of mental health issues continues to be taboo

“I think we still have a lot of the cowboy mentality of ‘pull yourself up by the bootstraps,’ ‘suck it up you will be fine’ kind of thing, which prevents people from seeking out the help that they need in terms of dealing with depression,” Spring said.

The walk is meant to raise awareness of the problem and symptoms of suicide and identify resources that are available in the area, she said.

People will gather at the clock tower at 7 p.m., when Juliana Hallows, suicide prevention coordinator for the Montana Veterans Affairs office in Helena, will speak to the crowd about how a small act of support can help prevent suicide.

Survivors and those whose lives have been impacted by suicide will have a chance to speak to the crowed about their experiences.

Spring said people who have lost loved ones to suicide will have a chance to make luminaries, small white paper bags with messages written on them containing a lit candle.

Organizers will distribute lists of local suicide support services and suicide awareness bracelets. Counselors will be present to speak with those who wish to talk.

The event is free and open to the public.