On March 12, members of the Utah Chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention made the announcement that they are welcoming Carbon County’s Amanda McIntosh as their newest member.
Many in the area know McIntosh’s story. She was born in Las Vegas and moved to Price in 2009 with her husband, Brian. In 2014, Brian died by suicide, which devastated McIntosh and led her to the HOPE Squad of Carbon, Emery and Grand Counties.
“Losing my husband to suicide was, and is, heartbreaking. It forever changed my life, his family’s and friend’s lives, but most importantly our daughter Abbigale’s life,” McIntosh stated.
Through McIntosh’s volunteering and new-found passion regarding suicide prevention, she felt called to apply for the Suicide Prevention Specialist position at the Southeast Utah Health Department (SEUHD).
McIntosh has a bachelor’s degree in psychology and is also a certified instructor for the Question, Persuade and Refer (Q.P.R.) training, which has featured over 1,000 local participants. Along with those accomplishments, she is certified in mental health first aid and much more.
She is the current vice president of the HOPE Squad and is an active individual of the Carbon & Emery Opioid & Substance Use Coalition as well as the Carbon Addiction Reduction & Elimination (CARE) Coalition. In addition, McIntosh is in the early stages of obtaining signatures to create a suicide prevention specific license plate for the state of Utah. Proceeds will benefit the 13 health departments throughout Utah in their efforts to raise awareness for suicide prevention.
“With the help of so many amazing people in our community, we have found some healing and hope. We have gained a new family; our brothers and sisters of suicide loss. It took losing my husband to find my passion: creating a world without suicide for my daughter and for all our loved ones. For that, I’ll be grateful to him and try my best to make him proud,” McIntosh said.
The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention remarked that McIntosh is passionate about suicide prevention. She said that she and her daughter are excited to be a part of the Utah board.
“I am honored and truly humbled to be a board member for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention-Utah Chapter. This will be the ultimate opportunity to bring more resources, support and partnerships to Southeast Utah. It will be a beautiful collaboration for our communities to educate, raise awareness and put an end to the stigma around mental health. To say I’m excited is an understatement. I cannot wait,” concluded McIntosh.
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- Photos by Janarie Cammans
