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Stopping Suicide

A division of

UMatter teen group to host talk
by “Golden Gate” suicide expert.

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2121980

January 26 • 2017

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K

evin Briggs has literally talked
hundreds of people “off the
ledge” during his years as a
highway patrolman on the Golden
Gate Bridge. On Wednesday evening,
Feb. 1, Briggs will share his experi-
ences in a community program on
teen suicide and what can be done
to increase awareness and education
about this growing problem.
The event is spon-
sored by UMatter, a
teen-driven initia-
tive that is an out-
growth of the Daniel
B. Sobel Friendship
House program of
Friendship Circle of
Michigan. The proj-
Kevin Briggs
ect is spearheaded
by a teen board
of students from several local high
schools, under the direction of Rabbi
Yarden Blumstein, Friendship Circle
volunteer coordinator.
Breaking the stigma associated
with suicide and mental health issues
such as depression is a key goal
for teen board leaders Ryan Ishbia
and Josh Cooper, seniors at West
Bloomfield High School. When three
students and one teacher from the
high school committed suicide last
year, the topic was brought to the
forefront, prompting the teens to
coordinate a weeklong UMatter pro-
gram of videos, TED-style talks and
other presentations last November.
Now the teens are turning their atten-
tion toward the general community.
“We want to see a big change when
it comes to discussing mental health,
mental illnesses,” Cooper said. “The
world has been lacking dialogue;
people aren’t talking about these
things. For years, suicidal individuals
were afraid to talk about it. Break the
stigma, provide some education and
tell some powerful stories — that’s
what we’re striving toward.”
Cooper and Ishbia have also par-
ticipated in “safeTALK,” a half-day
suicide prevention training that
Blumstein has presented to numer-
ous local and out-of-state groups.
“It’s like a domino effect, and safe-
TALK puts the dominos out there,”
Cooper said. “Like a neighborhood

watch, we want to get to where a
massive amount of people are trained
in what to look for. The goal is to cre-
ate a community trained to detect
signs. Nintey-six percent of suicides
emit a sign or red flag, but most peo-
ple don’t know what to look for.”
According to Briggs and others
who work in the field of suicide pre-
vention, listening to someone who
is contemplating suicide, without
arguing or blaming, can be crucial,
and the safeTALK program provides
specific guidelines for having these
potentially life-saving conversations.
“The goal is to recognize, engage
and bring the person to help,” said
Blumstein, who has personally han-
dled more than 200 crisis calls since
he took the safeTALK training one-
and-a-half years ago.
He believes widespread education
will help develop networks of people
trained to help peers in crisis.
The program, which is co-spon-
sored by the Jewish Fund Teen Board
and the American Foundation for
Suicide Prevention, will take place
from 7-8:30 p.m. at The Shul in
West Bloomfield. Representatives
from Jewish Family Service of Metro
Detroit and Kadima Mental Health
Services will be on hand to answer
questions and provide resource infor-
mation. There is no charge, and the
event is open to all.
To register, visit friendshipcircle.
org/Umatter or contact Yarden
Blumstein at (248) 788-7878 or
yarden@friendshipcircle.org. •

Ryan Ishbia and Josh Cooper