About 28 years ago, a few compassionate individuals suffering from loss had a vision to provide a private source of support for others who have lost a loved one to suicide. These families teamed with scientists to create the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, or AFSP. Today, the AFSP is a national leader in the fight against suicide, through funding research, creating educational programs, advocating for public policy, and supporting survivors of suicide loss.
AFSP hosts Out of the Darkness walks across the nation to raise awareness and funding for future projects and research. On October 10, AFSP will have an Out of the Darkness community walk at Mission Plaza in Downtown San Luis Obispo.
As a part of Verdin’s CAREs (Community Advocacy by Responsive Employees) program, Verdin is donating marketing and public relations services to the SLO Out of the Darkness walk. Our efforts will be focused on increasing the number of walkers and donors and attracting media attention to the walk.
The 2015 SLO Walk already has more participants and money raised than last year. The goal of the Walk is to raise $18,000 to educate the community about suicide and fund research. With the help of many local organizations, the SLO Walk has already raised over $14,000 and has 223 participants.
The SLO walk is roughly three miles long through Downtown SLO. Walkers can register online until noon on Friday before the walk, or at the door before the walk begins. AFSP’s hard work combined with the efforts from compassionate walkers and donors has allowed AFSP to set the goal of reducing the annual suicide rate 20% by 2025.
