American Foundation for Suicide Prevention Indiana Chapter
September 2011
Vol 1, Issue 1

Chalk writings 2009

This is one our favorite pictures (Survivor Lis Crosby)- also in the September issue of Indianapolis Woman, Page 10 

Breaking the Silence

AFSP Indiana Newsletter

Greetings!
walk photo
September is a very special month for us.  September 10th is World Suicide Prevention Day, making this week National Suicide Prevention week (September 4th thru the 10th).  September also marks the beginning of Out of the Darkness Walk season for AFSP.  Indiana Walks start with Indianapolis on the 10th, Chesterton on the 17th, Benton County on the 18th, South Bend on the 24th and Munster on the 25th.  We hope you will consider joining us for one or more of the Indiana Walks.  Registration is free.  Donations are appreciated. 

Indianapolis, on September 10th, has some fun new things happening.  An art student from U of Indy has created a Remembrance Tree in which walk participants can bring a copy of a picture of their loved one, create a leaf ornament at the walk, write a message on the leaf, hang it on the tree... and those leaves will become a scrapbook to view at future AFSP events.  Additionally, we have live music from Charlie's Pocket in the morning and a drum circle provided by Bongo Boys Music School which the walkers can participate in following the walk.  We have Starbucks coming out to provide iced tea and coffee drinks.  The Lifekeeper Quilts will be on display.  Many other exciting organizations
are coming out to participate as well- TWLOHA, Ben Davis Radio Station, Sandy on the Scene, IYG, the VA in Indianapolis and so much more!  Mayor Ballard will be joining us again this year!  And a special award will be given to a very determined Survivor that has made a difference Nationally!  One voice does make a difference. 
We look forward to seeing you on walk day!
TEXT TO DONATE !!!! 
walk logo
It doesn't get any easier  than this.............

To Give $10 to your walk

 

Text: AFSP (CITYCODE) to 85944 and reply YES to confirm your gift!

   

Please note: all Text Donations will be directed towards GENERAL Walk Funds, not a specific walker or team.

   

You MUST have a space between AFSP and CITYCODE in order for your donation to be processed.

 

(Example: Text:  AFSP INDY  to 85944, when you receive a response,  reply with YES to confirm your donation.)

 

This works for all 8 Indiana OOTD walks:

Indianapolis OOTD-  Code: AFSP INDY
Chesterton OOTD-    Code: AFSP CHESTERTON
Benton CO OOTD-   Code: AFSP BENTON
Northwest OOTD-     Code: AFSP MUNSTER
South Bend OOTD-  Code: AFSP SBEND
Evansville OOTD-     Code: AFSP EVANSVILLE
Bloomington OOTD- Code: AFSP BLOOMINGTON
Fort Wayne OOTD-   Code: AFSP FTWAYNE   

 

In This Issue
TEXT to DONATE
Top 10 Reasons to Walk
National Prevention Week
Quick Links






 

Join our Mailing List!
TWLOHA logo
To Write Love On Her Arms will be joining us at the Indianapolis, Evansville and Bloomington walks.  They have a walk team registered for each walk, and they will have merchandise at each event- make sure you bring $
Join our Mailing List!
Like us on Facebook

Top 10 Reasons You Should Walk in an

Out of the Darkness Community Walk:


I wasnt done being your sister
10. Help us Silence the Stigma of Depression and Suicide by walking!

 

9. Meet new people that understand your struggles and loss, make new friends! 

 

8. Learn about other AFSP programs and meet AFSP volunteers  

 

7. Get to chance to enjoy a park or the canal in downtown Indy with friends and family

 

6. Help us provide suicide prevention programs in your community while helping keep prevention a national priority

 

5. Raise $150 or more in donations and get a free walk t-shirt!

 

4. Give back to our community and help us remember those we've lost.

 

3. Walk as an individual or organize a team and bond with family or friends! Simply have each team member register under your registered team name.

 

2. Raise Awareness about Suicide: the 4th leading cause of death in the US ages 18 - 65

 

1. Help the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention save lives! Support AFSP's outreach and research for the prevention of suicide.

 

Registration is free & easy! Go to http://www.OutOfTheDarkness.org and click on "Find a Walk Near You"  

National Suicide Prevention Week- September 4th- September 10th
Lifeline numberAccording to preliminary data, more than 36,000 people died by suicide in 2009 (most recent published statistics), making it the 10th leading cause of death in the U.S. With the suicide rate in this country trending upward, there is a greater urgency to do more.

National Suicide Prevention Week starts on Sept. 4 and culminates with World Suicide Prevention Day on Sept. 10. Here are five ways to get involved, raise awareness about this public health problem and help save lives:

1) Take a moment to learn about suicide risk factors and warning signs.

To further spread awareness, click the "share" icon on the top right of these pages to post to your social media accounts.


2) Make a $10 donation to suicide prevention by texting "AFSP Indy (or other walk stated above)" to #85944.

3) Join AFSP's Field Advocate Program and work with the Foundation to make suicide prevention a national priority. Click here to sign up to be an advocate.
It is our hope to have 2 Field Advocates in each of the 9 Congressional Districts in Indiana...
will you help us?


4) If you have lost a loved one to suicide, please know you are not alone. For resources visit www.afsp.org/survivingsuicideloss.
International Survivors of Suicide Day is Nov. 19. There will be nearly 300 healing conferences around the world. To find a conference site near you or the watch the program online, visit www.afsp.org/survivorday. If you are interested in starting a conference in your area, please contact Lisa at [email protected]

5) Register for an Out of the Darkness Community Walk at www.OutOfTheDarkness.org. AFSP will be holding more than 250 community walks across the country to raise funds and awareness for suicide prevention.

Go to BAT for AFSP
StateFarm Go to BAT

AFSP is proud to announce that we have captured the third weekly $18,000 donation in State Farm's "Go To Bat Sweepstakes"! You can read the press release here. Thank you to everyone who went to bat for AFSP.

 

But the sweepstakes does not end until Sept. 26, so continue to play!

 

Each week, the charity with the highest batting average will receive $18,000, and the team with highest batting average at the end of the sweepstakes will win an additional $25,000. And you could also win a trip to the World Series!

 

To play, visit www.statefarm.com/GoToBat and create a login. You can play the online game three times per day, every day. The more players we have on our AFSP team, the better our chances of winning, so please invite your friends and family to play, too!

 

 

We know many of you look forward to the "Survivor Spotlight" section of our newsletter each month.  We did not have a submission for that section this month :-(  If you would like to submit your story to be published in our newsletter along with a story, please send the story in a word document, along with a jpg file picture to accompany the story~ to Lisa at [email protected]

It is a pleasure to serve our Hoosier communities as we strive to raise awareness & educate, provide programs and help those in need find resources, encourage and inspire those living with a depressive illness, those that have attempted suicide, and survivors of suicide loss!.  We are a community, We can learn from each other, We can educate others and We can make a difference.  Together we will be heard~
Hope to see you at the Out of the Darkness Walks!

 

*To Learn more about AFSP funded research* -  Click Here 

*To Learn More about the ISP program for Colleges -  Click Here 

*To Learn More about AFSP's LGBT Initiative* - Click Here 

*To Learn More about the More Than Sad Program -  Click Here 

 

 

Peace & Blessings,

 

Lisa Brattain - Chapter Chair
& the AFSP Indiana Board of Directors
American Foundation for Suicide Prevention
Indiana Chapter ~ 2010 Chapter of the Year for a Mid-Size Market
317.774.1377
P.O. Box 1793
Noblesville, Indiana 46061

Join our efforts to Silence the Stigma of Suicide and Depression!

In the US, a person dies by suicide every 15 minutes.  Every 16 minutes, someone is left to make sense of this tragic loss.

 

 



Media Recommendations for Responsible Reporting on Suicide