A group of concerned citizens, led by the parents of Ryan Rees who recently committed suicide
along with his friend Tyler, are holding an inaugural meeting
this Thursday, October 24th at Mad Jack's Mountain Brewery, 23 Main St, Bailey, starting at 5pm. They've already met with Park County Commissioners and Sheriff, who support their efforts to find ways to increase awareness of this issue and help prevent it from occurring again.
From the meeting event:
Peace and Blessings everyone. We will have our first dinner meeting on Thursday 10/24/19 @5:00PM (roughly). I invite everyone to attend so we can have some face time discussions about our direction and steps. Everyone will be responsible for their own meal expense. I look forward to seeing everyone there.
September 17 is the day our lives changed forever. The day we lost our baby boy. Only 22yrs old. Never in a million years would we have thought that our son was consumed in so much darkness that he chose to take his life. We are trying to raise funds for a memorial. Anything past that will be donated to our local crisis center. We have lost too many! None is enough, one is too many!
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Thank you Amsmetcalf, I'd forgotten about them! I'll pass the link along to the organizers.
"Now, more than ever, the illusions of division threaten our very existence. We all know the truth: more connects us than separates us. But in times of crisis the wise build bridges, while the foolish build barriers. We must find a way to look after one another as if we were one single tribe.” -King T'Challa, Black Panther
The truth is incontrovertible. Malice may attack it. ignorance may deride it, but in the end, there it is. ~Winston Churchill
BAILEY, Colo. -- Four weeks after losing their son to an apparent suicide, a Bailey family is making it their life’s mission to ensure their loved one didn’t die in vain.
“Anything, anything to save anyone’s life, to spare one family from this, then it’s all worthwhile,” Rodney Rees said.
To save another family from the same pain, the Reeses want to raise awareness about suicide.
They want to start by creating a monument at Mount Lindo, where they say Ryan took his own life.
“We want it to be where anybody who goes up there sees it and the first words are going to be ‘please think twice,’” Stacy said.
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Amsmetcalf wrote: Please reach out to Robbie’s Hope. They are an organization which you might be looking for!
robbies-hope.com/
Thanks, we reached out to Robbie's Hope just days before the meeting and they provided me with prevention/awareness items to handout. I look forward to working with them more in the future to help cure this epidemic.
Ryan's family asked us to share this upcoming event in the hopes that you could attend!
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Our family experienced unimaginable heartbreak and devastation three years ago this December when we lost our youngest son, Harry (just 15 years old) to suicide.
We moved to Bailey in 2006 and since then, the community has experienced the loss of the following students and community leaders: Adrian Phillips, Emily Keyes, Lane Munroe, Kjersti Anderson, Fire Chief Jeff Davis, Corporal Nate Carrigan, William Demaniow, Gabe Smith, Harry VanGulick, Taylor Steinbach, Maggie Long, and most recently Ryan Rees and Tyler Swindler. More losses for our small community in just a few years than most experience in a lifetime. These deaths have had a massive impact on the emotional well being of the students and the community as a whole. Eleven of these deaths were students and graduates of PCHS. Out of these eleven, suicide was the cause of 6 of them.
I imagine if the first responders were able to give a public report in the paper each week, that the community would be shocked by just how many calls they go on for suicide attempts. Or by how many calls the Suicide Hotline receives from Park County.
The school district is taking a very critical first step in recognizing the seriousness and shocking increase in student suicides and by acknowledging the daily struggles that the students are dealing with and working to assist those students in how to handle these challenges.
However, we, as a community, cannot just rely solely on the schools to ignite the fight against teenage suicide.
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My Mountain Town Community Calendar
- filter events by Category, date, or keyword to easily find events of interest. Add your community, church, or non-profit event to the calendar yourself! Click here
to access the submission form. Businesses: please contact us for more information on adding your events! Questions? Email
The nonprofit organization that Rodney and Stacy Rees are creating is having a 2020 kick-off meeting this coming Friday.
2020 SP/MH Kick-Off
Our first meeting of the year kicks off with a potluck dinner at the Harris Park Community Center. Some of the primary topics on the agenda are: Sign up for Mental Health First Aid, Introductions for: ParenT(w)een Connection and Judy J's Hands, and the Pep Squad. Please invite your youth pastors and youth community leaders.
Doors open at 6:00PM, dinner starts at 6:30PM, and meeting starts at 7:00PM. If you have a dish to bring please let us know. Paper plates, cups and plastic dinnerware are taken care of.
Friday, January 17, 2020 at 6 PM – 9 PM
Harris Park Community Center, 2154 Shelton Dr, Bailey, CO 80421
www.facebook.com/events/2828902677199447/
JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. – A mother grappling with the suicide of her son found a purpose this Christmas.
On Monday, Haunani Roark launched Kalani Foundation,
a nonprofit in honor of her 17-year-old son Dean Kalani. Her goal is to help families deal with the unexpected cost of suicide.
She wants to help pay for funeral expenses, lost wages, mortgage/rent, and provide scholarships for children left behind.
If you know anyone who is contemplating suicide or who needs help, call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline: 1-800-273-8255.
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There are also several after-school programs now offered by LeanIn1220
at Evergreen High School, Evergreen Middle School, Clear Creek High School, and at the LeanIn1220 office in Evergreen. Check our Community Calendar under Health, Wellness, and Safety Calendar Listings
to find them, and any additional QPR trainings that are scheduled.
My Mountain Town Community Calendar
- filter events by Category, date, or keyword to easily find events of interest. Add your community, church, or non-profit event to the calendar yourself! Click here
to access the submission form. Businesses: please contact us for more information on adding your events! Questions? Email
