Long time co-chairs Amy Black and Ed Hoell

We appreciate the thousands of people who have contributed to the 5K during these memorable years. We are grateful that the vision of former Development Director Jessie Dill, and former board member Sandy Shapiro, who founded the event back in 1999. We are indebted to our long-time co-chairs Ed Hoell and Amy Black, who shepherded the event as it grew into the largest suicide prevention walk in Massachusetts and one of the only suicide prevention sanctioned 5K runs in the country. We celebrate the hundreds of teams and individuals who have participated in memory of a loved one. Thank you for the donations you have collected, for the awareness you have generated and for the miles you have logged - all in the name of local suicide prevention.

View our new 5K PSA

As we look to the future, we welcome back Amy Black and her new co-chair Joe Shapiro as we gear up for this year's event on Saturday, September 28th at DCR's Artesani Park in Brighton. Help us to make the next 15 years as unforgettable as the last. Whether you're new to the 5K or you've been going since its inception, we hope that you decide to join us this fall. Registration is already open online! Please consider getting involved today:

Samaritans is committed to continuing to offer and increase our life-saving services to the communities of Greater Boston and MetroWest. We can be successful if we ensure the long-term financial health of our organization, so that we can make investments in key areas that will promote future growth. To achieve this long-term strategy, Samaritans' board of directors decided on a major re-organization of Samaritans' program operations, including closing the Framingham office, eliminating the jobs based out of that office, as well as the Youth Services Manager position, and consolidating the delivery of services within the Boston office.

This decision, while difficult for our community, ensures that the organization will continue to provide the same level of services to the Greater Boston and MetroWest communities in the short-term, and will position Samaritans to expand services in the long-term.

The public can continue to reach out to Samaritans, Inc. as they have in the past. Calls to all of the agency's helpline numbers, including the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, the Statewide Samaritans Toll-free Helpline, and the MetroWest and Boston helplines, as well as online chats, will continue to be answered by trained Samaritans volunteers. Volunteers from both locations will continue to have the opportunity to provide service from the Boston office. All of our Grief Support Services, including the Framingham SafePlace group (new location to TBD), and our Community Education and Outreach services will continue to be offered. Please check out our website for updates and information.