More than 80 people packed a room at St. Marks Church in Los Olivos to hear a panel speak about suicide prevention at the township’s first ever Suicide Prevention Forum, Sept. 18.

 

Put on by the Santa Barbara based Glendon Association, the 10th annual Suicide Prevention Forum discussed and shared stories and information on suicide prevention, risk factors, warning signs, effective treatment options, effected populations and community awareness about the issue.

“It’s true that suicide is uncomfortable to talk about, but so was breast cancer, and look how far we’ve come with that,” said Jaime Rotnofsky, Glendon Association executive director. “If we do not talk about it, if we ignore it, it won’t go away. It only gets worse. And that’s why we do what we do. We need to talk about it and increase the awareness and decrease the stigma. It will not go away by us just closing our eyes.”

 

The eight panelists included, Kevin Hines, the 26-year-old who attempted to commit suicide by jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge at the age of 19, Sally Steward, a Santa Barbara resident, who lost her daughter and niece to suicide, Dave Kuehm, a Santa Ynez Valley Union High School teacher and other specialists and doctors.

 

Hines emotionally spoke about some factors that led to his suicide attempt, his mental and physical recovery process as well as his treatment and acceptance of his bi-polar disorder.

 

“My mission in this life is to give people, whether they are 14 to 25 or 25 to 60 or older, who are thinking about suicide, hope, to let them know that they do have a future. Suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem,” Hines said. 

 

The forum also included a video featuring Hines and a presentation by Kuehm, who asked audience members to actively participate in what he termed his “IALAC” I Am Lovable and Capable, demonstration.

 

He exemplified how the “IALAC” concept, which most of us start our days with is chipped away as the day goes by. He then presented a visual of how some people only start off with portions of this concept and the affects that this could have on an individual.

 

Almost as it started, the forum ended with people looking at quilts of suicide victims and gathering around informational booths outside the meeting room.

 

 “It’s really important for people to understand that we are really looking at the root causes to why people experience a lot of the problems they do,” said Dr. Lisa Firestone, clinical psychologist and research and education director for the Glendon Association. “We got some issues going on in our county that contribute to the risks of suicide.”

 

The Glendon Association will put on another Suicide Prevention Forum in 2008. For more information about the Glendon Association or for a suicide help line visit www.glendon.org. or dial 211.