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Out Of The Darkness Campus Walk To Shed Light On Suicide

Courtesy photo

According to a report, the number of suicides in Sedgwick County is declining. A walk to bring attention to suicide prevention will take place Saturday on the Wichita State University campus.

There were 68 suicide deaths in Sedgwick County in 2015, that’s a decrease from 82 deaths the year before.

The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention's Kyle Solomon says he thinks the decline is due to more people seeking help, a well as more intervention efforts. Solomon is one of the coordinators for the “Out Of The Darkness Campus Walk."

"We come together as a community of healing, acceptance and safety for people who have either struggled with depression or have lost someone to suicide or have even attempted suicide ourselves," Solomon says. "The route that we walk is about a two and half mile route around the WSU campus."

More than half of the suicides in Sedgwick County involved guns, which is considered one of the most widely used methods of harm. 

Registration starts at 10 a.m. and the walk is at noon in front of WSU's Ablah Library.

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Carla Eckels is assistant news director and the host of Soulsations. Follow her on Twitter @Eckels.

 
To contact KMUW News or to send in a news tip, reach us at news@kmuw.org.

 

Carla Eckels is Director of Organizational Culture at KMUW. She produces and hosts the R&B and gospel show Soulsations and brings stories of race and culture to The Range with the monthly segment In the Mix. Carla was inducted into The Kansas African American Museum's Trailblazers Hall of Fame in 2020 for her work in broadcast/journalism.