Karen Stokey was elected President, Brian Hanner of Geib Funeral Care, Vice-President, David Schaffer, ADAMHS Board, Secretary and Chris Welsh of the Tuscarawas County Council on Church and Community will serve as Treasurer. 

According to Stokey, “A main focus of the Coalition is to create awareness of suicide and equip people with knowledge of the warning signs while using our many agencies to help reduce the incidence of suicide.  We want people of all ages to know that there is a place to turn to when they need help”. 

The Coalition recently completed a series of planning meetings and produced a strategic plan in July with the assistance of a consultant made available through funding provided by the Ohio Suicide Prevention Foundation.  The Coalition is scheduled to receive additional funding from the Foundation for community awareness related activities during 2010.  The Strategic Plan is available to the public in an electronic format on the ADAMHS Board’s website at www.adamhtc.org. (You may also click here.)

According to the most recent information available from the Foundation, Carroll County ranks 11^th highest and Tuscarawas County 85^th highest of Ohio’s 88 Counties in the per capita rate of suicide.  In Carroll County, the 65-74 year old age category has the highest rate of suicide.  In Tuscarawas County the 55-64 year old age group has the highest rate of suicide.      

“A death by suicide has far reaching effects in a community.” Brian Hanner said, “Not only do families affected by suicide present greater instances of complicated grief, but workplaces, schools, and neighborhoods are forever changed. The work of this Coalition will be to reduce the instance of suicide by equipping both professionals and community members with training and resources to assist people demonstrating suicidal behavior,” Hanner concluded.

In other Coalition news, Hanner announced events scheduled for Thursday, September 10, 2009 in recognition of World Suicide Prevention Day.  Geib Funeral Care will be hosting a training session on the signs and symptoms of suicidal behavior for teachers and clergy in the afternoon, followed by a 6:30 p.m. session for lay professionals and interested members of the public.   The sessions will be facilitated by Russ Crabtree, a nationally recognized expert on suicide and suicidal behavior.  The events will take place at the Geib Funeral Center located at 5600 N. Wooster Ave in Dover. Please contact Geib at 330.343.5506 to register. The cost for this program is underwritten by the Geib Family Foundation.

The newly formed Executive Committee of the Suicide Prevention Coalition of Tuscarawas and Carroll Counties recently convened its first official meeting at the ADAMHS Board.  The Executive Committee is charged with providing leadership to the entire Coalition by identifying local resources, establishing an operating budget and addressing training and service intervention needs which are all designed to reduce the incidence of suicide within the communities of Tuscarawas and Carroll Counties.  The mission of the Coalition is that "The communities of Tuscarawas and Carroll Counties will provide sufficient resources (programs) for the prevention of suicide."

Members include Health Commissioners, advocates, school personnel, mental health agencies and other interested organizations. The first order of business concerned the election of officers and creation of a committee operating structure for the Coalition.