This June, I'll be joining my best friend and her family on the Out of the Darkness Overnight Walk.
The goal of the Overnight is to raise funds and de-stigmatize suicide and depression by bringing it "out into the light".
Our team, Journey for Jay, will be walking the 18-mile course from dusk until dawn.
This means months of training, by the end of which I will have walked over 400 miles. This means raising at least $1,000. This means praying that my back is strong enough to take me to the finish line.
Doing this walk is a very lofty goal, but one that I am deeply committed to accomplishing; so many people close to me are battling depression, and I know several who have lost the fight and ended their lives. Mental illness is not an excuse, a cop-out, or "soft science".
Depression is real and over 38,000 people in the U.S. take their lives because of it every year.
If you would like to make a donation, please visit my donation page.
Please note: if there is someone specific you'd like to commemorate with your pledge, please let me know either in your comments or through a private email - I am making a Memorial List which I will bring with me and refer to throughout the Walk.
If you yourself are considering taking your own life, please call the Suicide Prevention Hotline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255). And please know that I mean this with all my heart when I say:
You are not alone.
I’ve really enjoyed reading this article, thank you for sharing. I really hope that your walk goes well and you raise what you need to :) Listen Fundraising have been working really hard this year to help raise money for a great cause! I recommend you check out the fundraising they are doing!
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