RHHS seniors organize suicide prevention run/walk

Growing up with a mother who is a psychologist, Eve Hayes was raised in a household that maintained open dialogue regarding topics like mental health and suicide.

It wasn’t until middle school that she realized she was an exception to the norm.

“A close friend of mine shared with me her struggle with self-harm and it completely opened my eyes to this world that wasn’t being talked about in our community,” the Red Hook High School senior said.

While the negative stigma regarding discussions of mental health itself has increasingly eased, especially in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, suicide and self-harm have often still felt taboo.

Hayes and classmate Danielle Darling hope their Run/Walk for Suicide Prevention can help change that. The students are organizing the 1.2-mile fundraiser as the Creativity, Activity and Service project required for earning their International Baccalaureate diplomas.

“When choosing this as a cause to support, it was important to us to get a conversation started in our community and educate others about the struggles of suicide,” Hayes said.

The run/walk will be held rain or shine Sunday, Sept. 29, beginning 9 a.m. and ending around 11 a.m. The route circles Linden Avenue Middle School and the track twice. Darling noted the loop is accessible and kept “somewhat short so people could stop if they want or need to.”

The event is free but donations – which will all go to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention – are encouraged. Any interested can Venmo “RHSuicidePreventionWalk.” Participants are encouraged to wear yellow, the color associated with suicide awareness.

The run/walk is being held in the final days of Suicide Prevention Month. Darling pointed out, events such as these can make it “easier to talk about a heavy topic when you see how many people want to help.

“Many people experience emotions that they might need help coping with,” she said. “It took me years to learn how to cope with my emotions in a healthy way, so I want to help educate everyone, not just those struggling, in order to help as many people as possible.”

In addition to the run/walk, there will be food sales, raffles and other attractions, like guest speakers Donna Thomas and Lisa Murray.

Thomas founded the non-profit James’s Warr;ors in memory of her son, who died by suicide. Murray lost her brother to suicide. Darling first learned about James’s Warr;ors through a school assembly and said “It truly moved me.”

While the run/walk is intended to educate others on the realities of suicide, Hayes said organizing it has taught its own lessons.

“We assumed it would be difficult to find support, as we are merely high school students. However, we have experienced the exact opposite,” she said. “The support that we have received from the community has been overwhelming, whether it was through donations or people offering to be involved in the organization of the event.

“We have been able to get entire sports teams to register, get raffle donations from local businesses, had community members offer to bring therapy dogs, have our school's Student Services Department support the event, and even have received donations from community members on our Venmo before the event has even begun. We are unwaveringly grateful to everyone who has supported this venture and we are so excited to get the community together to get our message out.”