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Mom Says It’s Not Okay for Suicide to Become Normal
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Sunday, October 1, 2017
 

STORY AND PHOTOS BY KAREN BOSSICK

Pirie Jones Grossman can appreciate the world-class skiing, the beautiful mountain scenery and the clean air and water that put Sun Valley on the map.

But lately, she worries, Sun Valley has become known for something else--suicide.

It's something that's been haunting Grossman for the past couple years, following the untimely deaths of four family friends ranging in age from 13 to 40.

It's something that spurred Grossman to bring in Kevin Hines, who has criss-crossed the country educating Americans about how to prevent suicide following his own jump from the Golden Gate Bridge.

And it's something that spurred her to link hands with others in an effort to come up with a community-wide endeavor aimed at changing the conversation about the thing that takes the lives of one American every 12 minutes.

This past week she broached the subject at the second annual TEDxSunValley held at the Sun Valley Opera House.

"Note that I didn't say my friends committed suicide," Grossman told an audience of about 320 people. "People who die by suicide don't want to die."

Grossman said she realized the community needed to examine the issue under a microscope when her daughter remarked, "Wow, Mom, I guess suicide is becoming normal around here."

Her own research led her to understand that Idaho is in the nation's Suicide Belt--a swath of states that includes Oregon, Montana, Wyoming, South Dakota, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Oklahoma and Alaska.

The suicide rate in Idaho is 57 percent higher than the national average, with Idaho having the fifth highest suicide rate. And Blaine County's rate is 17 percent higher than Idaho's.

"There is a 300 percent difference in suicide rates in Idaho versus New York, she said. Nationally teen deaths between 15 and 19 are at a 40-year high, having doubled, she added.

"The question comes to me: Why?" she said. "The answer is depression."

Teenagers go through episodes of depression that may last up to two weeks. But they think it's permanent, that things won't ever get better, Grossman said. And, while the rate of depression is rising, there has been no corresponding rise in help for young adults.

Kevin Hines was 17 when he jumped off the Golden Gate Bridge, and he told those attending his presentations in Sun Valley and Hailey that he decided he would not jump if just one person asked him if he were okay and encourage him not to jump.

He ended up jumping seconds after one woman approached him and asked him to take her picture,  oblivious to the tears streaming down his face.

Miraculously, an elephant seal kept him afloat until the Coast Guard could arrive. Afterwards, Hines decided his life did matter and he now describes the day he failed his attempt the luckiest day in his life.

The lives of Hines and his team members seemed to make a difference in the lives of local high school students, as well, as they were able to counsel youngsters who shared their struggles with cutting, substance abuse and other issues, Grossman said.

"If you think someone is contemplating suicide, ask them, ‘Are you thinking of killing yourself?’ " Grossman told the audience. "If they are, they will tell you…

She paused.

I'm not a suicide expert. I'm a mom who cares. And this is something we all need to care about."

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