Out of the Darkness Campus Walk for suicide prevention planned for Sunday at UGA

An effort to bring awareness to the problem of suicide will take place on the University of Georgia campus on Sunday.

The “Out of the Darkness Campus Walk” is hosted by UGA and the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. The walk is meant to raise awareness, educate, reduce stigmatization and support those who lost loved ones to suicide.

In February, attention was brought on the suicide of a 19-year-old student from Atlanta who took his life in a dormitory in February, the day before another young woman, Laken Riley, was slain on campus. A vigil on campus was held for both Riley and Wyatt Banks.

Las year, the walk at UGA ranked third in the nation for the most money raised.

“Last year there was one or two lives lost from suicide and a lot of people were impacted and the walk gave a space for people to come together as a community,” said Abby Cushing, a senior student from Marietta, who is chairing this year’s walk.

The walk begins at 11 a.m., but Cushing said volunteers are asked to arrive at the Tate Student Center between 10-11 a.m. to check in and get T-shirts in a meeting space on the fourth floor of the student center.

The ceremony begins with comments from four speakers, three students and a mother, then beads will be dispensed to walkers on the basis of their reasons for participating. The walk will make a loop around campus.

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Cushing, who said she dealt with mental health issues herself, said the walk allows people to gather “and see they are really not alone.”

She understands that life for a college student can be isolating and stressful.

“Our community and our campus are working hard to make sure everyone feels safe and can talk about this,” she said.

Male students are also affected by suicide.

“I worked hard to get a male speaker and it’s really hard to find one,” she said. “I was happy that one guy said yes. He is so great about how he talks about it. The strong men are the ones who reach out to their friends to make sure they are OK. The strong ones are OK to admit they might need some help.”

For more information go to: https://supporting.afsp.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=donorDrive.event&eventID=9683.

This article originally appeared on Athens Banner-Herald: Suicide Prevention group and UGA join for awareness walk Sunday