By Amanda McIntosh
Donned with new branding and under somewhat new leadership, the HOPE Squad of Carbon, Emery and Grand Counties hosted its 7th Annual HOPE Walk at the Price Peace Gardens on Friday night. The new branding included new flags and t-shirts with the squad’s new logo of teal and purple, which are the colors for suicide prevention and awareness. This event wrapped up National Suicide Prevention and Awareness Week.
All week, the HOPE Squad of Carbon, Emery and Grand Counties (under the umbrella of the Southeast Utah Health Department) hosted events that promoted and advocated for the prevention of suicide as well as providing support for the family and friends that have lost someone to suicide, also known as survivors of suicide loss.
On Monday, Sept. 9, the squad attempted to show Kevin Hine’s story Suicide: The Ripple Effect. Unfortunately, due to technical difficulties, the movie was not shown; however, the night was not a loss as Debbie Marvidikis (the Director of Health Promotions at the health department) was able to pick up where the movie stopped playing and was able to eloquently tell Kevin’s story and more importantly spread his message of HOPE. The evening then turned to a question and answer session as more than 20 members of the community joined in the very important discussion.
On Tuesday, Sept. 10, World Suicide Awareness Day, the squad hosted two candlelight vigils; one in Carbon County at the Price Peace Gardens and one in Emery County at the Castle Dale Courthouse. Each event had 20-25 people in attendance. The health department provided the candles. In Castle Dale, the suicide prevention awareness support group REACH UP hosted a fundraiser prior to the vigil in which they sold homemade Navajo tacos for $5. Emery County Sheriff Greg Funk and Savannah Eley talked about how important suicide prevention and awareness is and shared a reminder of how suicide has affected their lives and the ones they love. They also encouraged the community to stay involved. In Price, members of the loss community gathered despite the sprinkles from the sky. The attendees were serenaded by Andrew Lasslo’s guitar as they embraced familiar faces and with heavy hearts welcomed new ones to the suicide loss family. Amanda McIntosh, the Suicide Prevention Specialist with the health department, thanked everyone for coming to the event and shared her personal loss to suicide while encouraging others to speak their loved ones names as well. At 8 p.m. all over the world, including our hometowns, a candle was lit and burned for one hour to honor the lives lost to suicide and to pray for the families left behind to make sense of it.
Whether in Price or Castle Dale, you may have noticed a peculiar site at the Market Express on the corner of 100 North and Price River Drive or at the old courthouse in Castle Dale located at 95 E Main Street. All week, an art installation of purple, teal and personalized angels rested in their gardens to bring attention to the 95 people Carbon, Emery and Grand Counties have lost to suicide since 2013. With these gardens, the squad hoped to convey the message that these angels are not just numbers to calculate into our statistics, but they represent a loved one; a father, mother, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, grandpa, grandma, nephew, niece, son or daughter and everything in between whose life ended too soon. Angels were available for adoption to be personalized and returned for display. Amongst the angels, a sign was planted with local facts to explain the garden. You will also start to see a new marketing campaign around the counties reminding the community that they are loved, they matter and there is HOPE.
Finishing the week was the HOPE Walk. Competing with Carbon High School’s first home game and the opioid town hall meeting, the HOPE Walk still had over 100 attendees. Each family with their own story and connection to suicide were greeted with a few new activities to participate in. The first was the introduction of the new HOPE Squad t-shirts that were handed out for free. For an added touch, the squad provided iron-on letters to be taken home to personalize the shirts and a new purple and teal ribbon pin. There were temporary tattoos including the popular semi-colon, “you matter” hearts, and more purple and teal ribbons, honor beads (a tradition that the American Foundation of Suicide Prevention incorporates into their walks each year,) and a “H O P E” board where hopeful messages could be pinned to the individual letters as reminders to those who suffer, those we’ve lost and to themselves to keep moving forward. Another addition to this year’s event was the opportunity to give back to the counties by signing up for more information on a suicide prevention and awareness specific license plate, a project McIntosh is passionate about bringing to the whole state of Utah. With these license plates, a portion of the cost/fee purchasers pay will come directly back to our counties to be used in furthering education and expanding resources for suicide awareness. Over 50 people signed up, leaving just 450 more commitments to make the plates available statewide.
The weather was inviting and crisp as the Price American Legion presented our country’s flag and requested a moment of silence to remember the fallen soldiers and veterans that have died by suicide. The lovely Kenzie Munsell dazzled the crowd by singing the National Anthem. McIntosh welcomed everyone to the event and then invited everyone to follow Misty Oliver and Shelli Jo Martinez Ness around the block while they hoisted the HOPE Squad flags proudly into the air. Once everyone returned, Marsha Ellington of Marsha’s Sammich Shop-n-Bakery of Helper had dinner ready. Ungerman’s Meats in Emery County was kind enough to donate the hotdogs and hamburgers as well as a private donor and Marsha provided the homemade buns, all the fixings and also donated her incredible grill skills to the event. Castleview Hospital donated chips, Wal-Mart donated water, Coca-Cola donated soda and their trailer, and Mountain America and the USUE Sun Center donated many volunteers to help coordinate it all. Nick Adams from the Veteran’s Center and Cacilia Jensen and Olga Migliori of Four Corners Community Behavioral Health were in attendance distributing out pertinent information and swag. JB Johnson kept the night moving along with his beautiful songs and by sharing his commitment to the cause. His talents are insurmountable and everyone enjoyed the ambiance he created.
Once everyone had started eating, McIntosh invited Amanda Holley Paiz to share her inspirational story. She said “On average, there are 130 deaths by suicide every day in the United States. When you look at that number in the grand scheme of things and consider the 300 million people in our country, it may not seem that significant, but when you look at everyone who is standing beside you tonight and you realize these are all people who have been touched personally by suicide, that number doesn’t seem so small.” She shared that this year marks a decade since her own father left this world by suicide and the conflicting emotions that left her and her family with. She said that she often ponders if he ever knew how much he meant to those who loved him and reflected that he probably did, but he didn’t realize how much he should have meant to himself. Amanda continued with a story from her youth about giving money to a beggar on the street and the conversation that took place between her and her father afterward. She said that when she told her dad it was pointless to give this woman money and that she’d probably use it for booze or something worse, her father’s response has stuck with her all these years later. He said to his daughter “Amanda, it is not our place to judge what she chooses to do with that money. When you give of yourself to someone, that is something you will be accountable for with YOUR God, not theirs. What they choose to do with your gift is between them and THEIR God and it is not our place to judge them.”
After her moving tribute to her father, Amanda continued, “They say that suicide is the ultimate selfish act because you leave everyone else to deal with your choices… What you eat, drink, what car you drive, job you have, hobbies you love are all choices, but it how you treat those in need that is also a choice… That is why it is every human being’s duty to stretch out your hand and help your fellow man. We will all have those moments when we aren’t good enough, strong enough, pretty enough, smart enough, but I’m here to tell you that YOU ARE ENOUGH. To the mom crying in the shower because you have burnt the candle at both ends, look at your children’s smiling faces – you are enough. To the man struggling to make ends meet and carry the burden of supporting his family – we are here to share the load – you are enough. To the teenager who has been body-shamed or cyber-bullied – trust me, what you are dealing with now will pass and their opinions don’t matter – you are enough. To all those suffering with the thought that the world may be better without in it, I promise you, it’s not. Reach out your hand and we will grab it to pull you from the depths because YOU ARE ENOUGH…” In conclusion, she reminded the audience to never overlook the golden rule and to treat others as you would like to be treated; to care for your fellow man and live a life of compassion. “We need to lead by example and ultimately, we can change the world and we will all be enough.”
The week was a success for the HOPE Squad of Carbon, Emery and Grand Counties. They would like to again thank the following people/businesses for their generosity and donations that made these events so memorable and healing for the community; Gopher and Dino at Market Express Chevron and Sinclair, Ann Anderson and Dave Hocanson at Castle Country Radio, Marketing Elevated, Four Corners Community Behavioral Health (Mindi Madden, Ammon Sorensen, Olga Migliori, Cacilia Jensen) Ron and Scott at the Carbon County Fairgrounds, Price City, Carbon County Chamber of Commerce, Kelly at T.C. West, Emery County Business Chamber, Andrew Lasslo, Marsha’s Sammich Shop-n-Bakery, Ryan Davis at Coca-Cola, Nick at Wal-Mart, Gordon at Ungerman’s Meats, St. Anthony’s Church, REACH UP, Emery County Commissioners, Castleview Hospital, Tony Basso, Kenzie Munsell, the Price American Legion, Nick Adams, Tasha at Sign Edge, Dawn at Carbon Print and Design, Mountain America, USUE Sun Center, JB Johnson, Dave at A1 Rentals, ETV News and the Southeast Utah Health Department. Most importantly, thank you to all who attended one or all of the events, shared them on Facebook, Instagram and for passing the word along.
For more information about the HOPE Squad of Carbon, Emery, Grand Counties or to find out how to get involved, how to sign up for a Suicide Prevention and Awareness license plate, or for community resources follow them on Facebook by searching their name or by calling Amanda McIntosh at (435) 637-3671. They will be holding a HOPE Squad meeting on Oct. 10 at 10 a.m. at the Southeast Utah Health Department and everyone is welcome to attend. REACH UP meets every Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. at the Senior Citizen Center in Castle Dale. REACH UP can also be found on Facebook.
