Hundreds to Walk in Honour of Suicide Prevention

This Sunday, September 29 the 4th annual Suicide Prevention Awareness Walk will take place in Windsor. The walk starts at 9:30 a.m. at the St. Clair College Sportsplex, located at 2000 Talbot Road West, Windsor. Participants have the option of doing a 2K or 5K walk. It is open to the general public, pet friendly and is free of charge.

An average of 10 Canadians die by suicide every day in Canada. It is the second leading cause of death for those under the age of 25. In Windsor-Essex, from 2012 through 2016 more than 150 people have died by suicide. We must change this. We can change this.

“The walk is important in bringing both awareness to suicide prevention and allows us to honour the memory of individuals who have died by suicide,” says Claudia den Boer, CEO, Canadian Mental Health Association, Windsor-Essex County Branch (CMHA-WECB). “It’s also important for families bereaved by suicide to know they are not alone.”

CMHA-WECB and the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit (WECHU), along with several community partners, have organized the walk as part of a range of activities planned. Almost 1,000 people are expected to participate in the walk this year.

Throughout the month local community partners, businesses and organizations have held various special events, training seminars and more. The Suicide Prevention Awareness website, is the information hub for suicide prevention. There you will find information about the signs and symptoms of someone struggling with suicidal thoughts along with crisis information, and a toolkit that can be used to help raise awareness.

Media Has a Key Role – how we report on suicide in the news and the language we use can make a positive or negative contribution to suicide. As part of Suicide Prevention Awareness Month we are encouraging local media to adopt the Recommendations for Reporting on Suicide.