Samaritans' 5K Run/Walk for Suicide Prevention

(Boston) – More than 3,000 runners, walkers, families and team members will support Samaritans’ mission to prevent suicide at the 5K Run/Walk for Suicide Prevention on Saturday, September 26th along the Charles River. Samaritans’ staff, volunteers and 5K participants are excited for the 17th Annual 5K, the only suicide prevention walk in the Commonwealth that provides financial support to the 24/7 crisis lines answered by Samaritans, including calls answered from the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.
The importance of a caring, compassionate community is emphasized at the event, in which the majority of the participants will be running or walking in memory of loved ones lost to suicide. Money raised from registration fees, pledges and corporate sponsorships will help Samaritans and its volunteers ease the despair, pain and loneliness suffered by so many individuals in our area. Samaritans believes that when people are heard and feel comforted, our entire community benefits.

One of the inspiring teams participating in this year’s event that has experienced the life-changing work of Samaritans is Paul’s Team. Team Captain Laura Morrissey created the team in honor of her brother Paul, who loved running, skateboarding, and anything he could do outdoors. Laura is currently pursuing a Master’s Degree in Public Health, and realizes, “Suicide is such an issue because of the stigma surrounding it, and it’s swept under the rug. In public health, I’m really invested in what the family unit is and how it can produce wonderful members of society; I want to study how to best support people with mental illnesses and help them through any challenges.”

Her interest in public health was partly sparked by the loss of her brother, she explains: “Before Paul died, he went to so many different medical professionals, and the biggest problem I saw was that everything was disjointed; there was no one person to oversee his care. That responsibility fell on our family, and it’s really hard to do when you aren’t trained. I’m interested not only in the medical side but also in the problem of communication – no one in the country really sets goals, restrictions and guidelines for dealing with health problems.” Laura continues, “Paul was fortunate to get the care he needed, but there are many people who do not get that same care, and that’s not fair. I saw these inequalities for people who can and cannot receive care for something as little as a rash or as big as schizophrenia.”

Laura’s awareness of the scope of suicide as a public health issue was augmented by attending the 5K; she shares, “It was wonderful and sad at the same time how big the event was. It was nice knowing you’re not alone and your family is not alone and that there are other people who know what you’re dealing with, but it is also really sad how many people have lost someone to suicide.” The event also brings Paul’s family together, she explains, “The 5K really marks the year of his death – for us it’s a really nice way to memorialize the time that has passed and how he was. We’re very close and communicative, but it’s hard to talk about things that happened in the past that are sad. We talk about Paul and allude to him, but we never speak about what happened, and I think it’s because we understand the pain we’re all going through and we don’t have to bring it up.

“But because of that,” she continues, “having this event where we don’t have to talk about it, but we’re there for the exact same reason – it gives us those few hours to feel sad but also really hopeful. It’s much easier than saying ‘Let’s rehash it once a year and make everyone really sad;’ it’s active and you can distract yourself and make new friends at the same time. It’s a good way for us to cope.” The family gathers every year for Dunkin’ Donuts right at the start of the 5K, and added another tradition as well. Laura shares, “The first year we got bracelets, and we all wear those. We give new people bracelets and we all keep them in our cars. For some people it’s the only time of year that we see each other, so the event itself has become the tradition.”

The 5K is also an opportunity to discover – or rediscover – a community. Her hometown has been supportive; she describes how, “even when people haven’t realized what happened they are so responsive. They reach out and donated, and shared memories of Paul. You don’t realize the extent of how much people care until something like this happens, and we now see how much support we really have.” And the day of the event itself only emphasizes this: “Every single year,” Laura explains, “I recognize someone that I went to school with or grew up with, or knew in some other way and did not know they were also affected by suicide. Though it is sad to see how many people have been affected by suicide, it’s also nice to know other people are out there and it shows how much of an issue this really is. We definitely always recognize other people and it creates this larger network of people who have similar stories to tell.”

You can help Samaritans’ reach their fundraising goal, and help spread awareness about suicide prevention at this year’s 5K. This year’s event hopes to raise more than $400,000 for Samaritans’ mission to reduce the incidence of suicide in the Greater Boston and Metrowest community. If you would like to register for the 5K or make a donation to Paul’s Tean, please visit their fundraising webpage found at www.samaritans5K.org

This event is not just a memorial of those who have died by suicide, but a celebration of their lives. This day does not have to be one focused solely on mourning, rather aims to make the race, a joyful day. The family fun festival will be an exciting time, filled with children’s activities, face painting, prize giveaways and for the first time this year, food carts!


More about Samaritans

Samaritans is a locally based non-profit organization, and all of the proceeds generated from the 5K stay in Massachusetts to fund life-saving services, including our 24/7 phone and text helplines, Community Education and Outreach, and Grief Support Services for those who have lost a loved one to suicide. All of Samaritans’ services are free to those in need.

Samaritans is a premier suicide prevention organization serving the Greater Boston and Metrowest areas. For over 40 years, Samaritans volunteers have answered more than 1.5 million phone calls to its 24/7 and Samariteens telephone helplines. The agency has also trained more than 4,000 volunteers and instructed more than 100,000 individuals through its community education and outreach programs. Thousands of individuals and families have been helped through the Samaritans’ grief support groups.

For more information on the Samaritans please visit www.samaritanshope.org or contact the business office at 617-536-2460 or info@samaritanshope.org

Samaritans 24/7 helplines:
• Boston: 617-247-0220
• Samaritans Statewide Toll Free Helpline: 877-870-HOPE (4673)
• Teens: 800-252-TEEN (8336)
• Crisis Text Line: Text “LISTEN” to 741-741