Out of the Darkness Community Walk for suicide prevention

ALTOONA, Wis. (WEAU) - In a day full of remembrance, hope, and support. The Out of the Darkness Community Walk brings people together to prevent suicide one step at a time.

“It is a suicide prevention walk where people can come and feel a sense of community. Just know that they’re not alone in their struggle or in supporting others that struggle or in being a suicide loss survivor. So it just really gives a sense of community and just feeling like you don’t have to go through the things that you’re feeling alone”, says Janelle Moneypenny, a chair of The American Foundation of Suicide Prevention.

Each walker sported different colored beads all with a certain meaning.

“It just gives a person a way of looking at somebody and seeing how they relate to the cause”, says Moneypenny.

The American Foundation of Suicide Prevention, which holds the event, has already raised more than $10,000.

“These walks help us bring in funds so that we can do community programing and we do things like we have Talk, Saves Lives, which is a program that we can go in to different organizations and businesses and just tell people how to support people who are struggling, how to identify the signs”, say Moneypenny.

Some walkers say they are walking for their loved ones.

“We’re walking in memory of our son Korey and awareness of suicide. Hope that nobody else has to ever go through this lifelong pain we’re in right now”, says Kim Bernier.

“We unfortunately, earlier this year, lost my brother in law, Joe. He unfortunately lost a battle to depression, something he kind of dealt with lifelong. And it’s one of those things where suicide with I mean, it’s a totally different kind of loss”, says Scott Miller.

Before the walk, the crowd raised their beads in the air to show why they were at the event.

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