“Out of the Darkness” sheds light on suicide awareness, prevention

Illustration by: Skye Lim
Illustration by: Skye Lim
Illustration by: Skye Lim

This Saturday, hundreds of volunteers will walk on campus to raise both money and awareness about the dangers of suicide and depression.

VCU’s counseling services has teamed up with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) to host an “Out of the Darkness” fundraiser walk to shed light on awareness initiatives and help students who may be struggling with depression.

The Out of the Darkness walk begins at 10 a.m. but volunteers can sign up until noon on the day before the event, April 1. Donations will also be accepted for the for the walk until June 30, 2016.

Jennifer Gerlach, one of the event organizers, said she is adamant about helping those in their darkest of times.

“Silence is the biggest ally for suicide,” Gerlach said. “It’s important for us to reach out to our campus community and raise awareness and support each other.”

Suicide is the second-leading cause of death among people aged 25 to 34 and the third-leading cause of death among people aged 15 to 24. As a full time high school counselor, Gerlach said she knows how much of a struggle this time can be for students.

“We definitely want this to be more than just asking for money and then going for a walk,” Gerlach said. “We want it to be purposeful and impactful, where people can get some help for themselves or someone they care about.”

Because of this, Gerlach wanted to bring the fundraising event to VCU with the help of the school’s counseling services.

Out of the Darkness will include not only host a volunteer walk through the Monroe Park campus, but there will also be a resource fair on the Compass that will house student and community services aimed at educating and providing resources for those at the university.

“People need to know that it’s a brave thing to get help,” Gerlach said. “Anything we can do to destigmatize suicide and provide students and our community with the resources they need is important.”

Samuel Goodrich, Contributing Writer

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