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Berlin, Ocean Pines News Worcester County Bayside Gazette Logo Berlin, Ocean Pines News Worcester County Bayside Gazette

410-723-6397

Suicide prevention group looking for liaison volunteers

(Oct. 13, 2016) Suicide has risen to become the second-leading cause of death for young Americans, and the Jesse Klump Suicide Awareness & Prevention Program was created to stem the tide of youth suicides on the lower Eastern Shore through a program of education and outreach.
“We have received a grant that will enable us to expand our reach into schools, and volunteers are needed to act as liaisons between the suicide prevention program and guidance offices in every Worcester County intermediate, middle and high school,” Jesse Klump Memorial Fund President Kim Klump said. “The position will require no more than about 20 hours per year, but is vitally important if we are to reach young people who are thinking about suicide.”
The grant, from the Estelle Friedman Gervis Family Foundation, will provide for materials for 10 volunteers to strengthen the relationship between the suicide prevention program and guidance offices. Volunteers will receive basic suicide prevention training, introduce themselves to the school guidance counselors, and keep a steady stream of suicide prevention and mental health materials available to students.
“By building a relationship with school counselors, we hope that our volunteers will find other opportunities for us to teach students and school personnel how to recognize suicide’s risk factors and warning signs, and provide them with the tools to keep a student safe until a mental health professional can step in,” Klump said. “We are prepared with classroom lessons and materials for tabling events, and just need the invitation.”
The program envisions that each volunteer will be responsible for one school. Guidance offices will be given brochures on youth suicide prevention aimed at the student population, for parents whose children have threatened suicide, and for families dealing with the grief following a suicide or suicide attempt and looking for ways to help young people understand. Because mental illness is typically the tipping point, there is information on dealing with student stress, bullying and depression.
If interested in becoming a school liaison volunteer, contact the program’s Outreach Coordinator, Dina Karpf, at 410-430-0627, or send an email to choosetolive@jessespaddle.org.