From the desk of Ebonie Freeman, 2024 MSW Candidate at Baylor University
Suicide is the sixth leading cause of death among Black women ages 23-34 (Vance et al., 2022). African American students were 14% of all first-generation students but 11% of continuing education students (Education Department releases racial data on first-generation college students, 2017). I share these statistics with you because
Buck The Stigma
As much as I would love to pretend otherwise, I’m one of those Texans that happened to be born in a different state. Being from somewhere else can give you a unique view of a place; elements that people tend to take for granted because of how they were raised stand out to the outsider.
Lessons From the Field
If you haven’t yet had the time to read David Brooks’ heartbreaking discussion on losing a friend to suicide, we at The Foundation highly recommend taking your next opportunity to do so. You can read the article by clicking here. Mr. Brooks’ column encapsulates a number of different themes and concerns that we are seeing on the front lines of our battle with depression, suicide and hopelessness, and further is an uncompromising assessment of what to do and what not to do for a friend in need.
Putting the Hope in Hope Squad
Recently, our local CBS affiliate, KTVT 11, did a news story on the programming that The Foundation provides in and around North Texas. The story is a reminder of how important prevention programs are for our community, and how we all have a responsibility to serve those around us.
UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES
Here at The Jordan Elizabeth Harris Foundation, we aren’t really interested in coronating villains, and the goal of this post is not to pile on the think pieces that have already responded to the structures and consequences of those structures evidenced in the reporting from The Washington Post. Our goal is really to talk through intentionality and better understanding the consequences that our decisions have in the real world – even when that is tough to talk about.
THE MASK SUICIDE WEARS
Last month suicide took a prominent place across the news cycle when we learned of the death Stephen Bass, who most of the world knew by the name tWitch. The response to his death is both eye-opening and predictable, and I’m writing to all of you because I have to confess that I’ve been on both sides of this response. Until recently, when I chose to join The Jordan Elizabeth Harris Foundation, I used to think about the same lies of suicide that you’re hearing and seeing across social media and articles right now:
He was selfish.
He wasn’t thinking about his family.
He had so much going for him.
No one could have seen this coming.
Go Time In Fort Worth with Mayor Mattie Parker: The Podcast
As National Suicide Prevention Month comes to a close, Mayor Parker talks with Kristi Wiley and Isaac Manning from the Jordan Elizabeth Harris Foundation about their efforts in North Texas to eradicate suicide by funding depression research, creating awareness through education, and battling the stifling stigma.
The Raising Joy Podcast: Kristi Wiley
On this episode of the Raising Joy, our own Kristi Wiley with the Jordan Elizabeth Harris Foundation joins Guidance and Counseling Coordinator Kasey Holder and Mansfield Independent School District, MISD student Kaylee Berger on the podcast. They share how the program has changed the culture at school and why they think giving students tools to help their friends is saving lives.
We are Cycling Again: Light the Trail Bike Ride 2022
We’re embarking on the second Light the Trail ride, to honor the tenth anniversary of the passing of Jordan Harris by suicide. Learn more about our upcoming ride.
The Change Makers Podcast
The ChangeMakers podcast hosted Tom and Ellen Harris on their latest episode, sharing their story.
The Raising Joy Podcast: Tom and Ellen Harris
Tom and Ellen Harris join Cook Children’s Raising Joy podcast. Listen to their interview here!
Gratitude
As The Jordan Elizabeth Harris Foundation winds down 2021 and prepares for the new year, we want to reflect on the things we are most grateful for and for the things we are preparing for in 2022.
What you need to know about Over the Counter Meds and Suicide
We associate over the counter medications with relieving headaches, fevers, and muscle aches, and so we store them in easily accessible places like our kitchen and bathroom cabinets, where they sit unlocked and ready for use in the event that they are needed. But too many ingested at one time can have devastating and deadly results.
Mental Health Belongs to Everyone
Maria was at the end of her rope. She wasn’t sure she wanted to live anymore but didn’t know where to turn. She couldn’t go to a therapist; what would her family say? Would they think she’s crazy? And even if she did go, there wasn’t anyone near her that spoke Spanish or one that she could even afford.
Simone’s greatest landing
Shock waves traveled across the world this past week when Simone Biles withdrew from several individual and team Olympic events. As quickly as the public expressed concern for the most decorated American gymnast of all time, there were also harsh comments spewed through social media channels.
Mental Health and How We Should Talk About It
In today’s world we see images of success, wealth, happiness, and what society deems as “normal”. These are all lovely thoughts, but the glossiness of these images may have also clouded the way our society views mental health, mental illness, and mental disorders.
Let’s Taco ‘Bout QPR…VIRTUAL EDITION!
…COVID-19 sure is weird and I HATE not being able to spend our regularly scheduled time together each month eating tacos and tackling suicide prevention. So we thought….hey! let’s turn these lemons into lemonade and provide QPR virtually! And hey! Let’s also add a taco recipe, eat the tacos together remotely…
A Conversation with Psychiatrist Diana Ghelber, M.D.
We asked experienced Fort Worth psychiatrist and friend of The JEH Foundation Diana Ghelber, M.D. if she would help us understand how these drugs work and their specific use. Dr. Ghelber spoke on the subject as a featured guest at our Annual Luncheon back in 2017. Here she shares…
The 6th Annual “Bring the Conversation to Light” Luncheon
We couldn’t be more thrilled with this year’s packed-house turnout for the 6th Annual “Bring the Conversation to Light” Luncheon. Over 1,200 people dedicated to the fight against suicide came to celebrate our achievements over the past year…
A CONVERSATION WITH STAFF CARE CHAPLAIN AND FORMER FIREFIGHTER CAMERON BROWN
Amidst her 35+ year career as a firefighter, first stationed abroad in the military and then here in the Fort Worth Fire Department, Cameron Brown showed an aptitude for lending a compassionate ear to her peers and received training to administer Critical Incident Stress Debriefings…