Brother's Death Leads Firefighter To Save Lives In A New Way

MILFORD, CT — On May 1, William G. Jamieson Jr., who is a captain and EMT in the Electric Boat Fire Department in Groton, lost his brother, Alexander Jordan Jamieson, 22, of Milford, to suicide.

Jamieson knew he wanted to do something to try and help others who are battling depression and it led him to create the 'Alexander Jordan Jamieson Foundation Inc.'

The foundation grew out of a movement in Milford where thousands of people, who were touched by Alex's kindness and compassion, signed a petition, and led the city of Milford to rename its skate park after Alex. It began even before that as 1,000 people waited in line for hours to pay their respects at his calling hours.

"I was stunned and thought how he said he had no friends. We had planned for an average service, thinking we might see 100 or so faces between friends and family. Well, the friend that called was right. A line developed out the back of the funeral home and extended down the Milford Green from about 4:45 pm until almost 8:30pm," Jamieson said.

The mission of the newly formed organization is "We want to make every effort to Un-STIGMA the conversation around depression and suicide. And we cannot accomplish this dream without the support of our community. "

"Change has to start somewhere, and in my opinion there is no better place than Milford to start this change. I have lost too many to this exact illness, this disease called Depression. There are far too many familiar names from Milford where I grew up that have left us too soon as a result of depression," Jamieson said.

What Will This Foundation Do?

The foundation will "fight depression through music. Our goal is to raise funds and use those funds to provide instruments and musical lessons to children in the community that would not otherwise have access to them. In particular, children that are at risk for or known to be battling depression and other emotional health battles," Jamieson said.

Alex loved music as he was a gifted songwriter and guitarist. He even got to live out his dream by performing at Toad's Place in New Haven. Alex also loved skateboards and spent a lot of time at the Milford skatepark.

"I have heard many stories of Alex helping other skaters, some much younger, learn new tricks or master old ones while at the park. Alex always tried to friend the kids that no one else paid attention to and make them feel better about themselves. He was a caring soul," Jamieson said.

The Long List Of Lives Alex Impacted

"The night of Alex’s service, someone posted on social media, “Is there a concert or something on the green tonight.” This was of course because of the attire of the friends that were waiting in this incredible line to pay respects to their friend, their brother. They came dressed as the family requested, “How Alex would want you to.”

"It was a sea of Green Day and other bands shirts. I realized something as I stood and hugged each person after they said their goodbye. I asked each of them how they had met my brother. And oh so many of them said similar things, “How do I get through this without him to help me through” and “Alex was always there for me, who is gonna help me through this.”

"They also told me countless stories of Alex helping them, through their own tragedies, no matter how big or small, of helping them when no one else was their friend. And they told me how they tried to help him, so many therapists and teachers, counselors and peers said the same. That he was kind, that they wished they could have done more. And that is when I realized. We can’t let Alex’s mission to help people end with his passing," Jamieson recalled.

Milford Skate Park To Be Renamed After Alex But It's Much More Than That

The Milford Parks and Recreation commission voted unanimously to rename the Milford Skate Park after Alex and it will be called 'The Alexander Jordan Jamieson Memorial Skate Park.' This was the result of a Change.Org petition one of his friends started that quickly grew to 3,000 plus signatures, Jamieson said.

"But we had one request, to make the dedication and the Skate Park about not only Alex, but about Suicide Prevention. To make it about the battle against depression that is plaguing our society. We will have signage with the 24/7 suicide hotline phone number. We also want to use this as an opportunity to encourage those that use the park to keep the activities and graffiti family friendly," Jamieson said.

"To remind them that this is their park - the skateboarders - to come and enjoy, to forget the stresses of life and just skate. But to remember, there are some little future skaters out there whose parent(s) would love to be able to bring them to the park without exposing them to vulgarity and other things ahead of their age bracket. Not that we will be able to stop all of it, but I think we can help curb a lot of it between his group and the signage we intend to have at the park,"Jamieson said.

A dedication will be held at the park on Oct. 12 and there will be live music, Suicide prevention representatives, food trucks, merchandise tent and most importantly to start a conversation in town about depression.

"I am hoping we can take a stand and start something big here, but it will not be possible without everyone’s help," said Jamieson.

For more information about the foundation email ajjfoundinc@gmail.com or visit www.AJJFOUNDATION.ORG