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Mid-Ohio Valley women take on suicide prevention cause

Participating in Saturday’s community walk

Jeannie “Kitty” Goff, left, and Lacy Workman, right, stand at the Parkersburg City Park bandshell, where Saturday’s Out of the Darkness Community Walk will begin and end. (Photo by Paul LaPann)

PARKERSBURG — Different events are leading Jeannie “Kitty” Goff and Lacy Workman to participate in Saturday’s Mid-Ohio Valley Out of the Darkness Community Walk in Parkersburg City Park.

But the goal of the two women is the same: to prevent suicide.

Goff, 43, of Parkersburg, lost her 17-year-old son Christian Morris to suicide.

Workman, 38, of Pomeroy, Ohio, is an attempted suicide survivor.

Goff and Workman are members of a committee planning Saturday’s community walk, sponsored by the West Virginia chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

The 12th annual awareness and fundraising event begins with registration at the park bandshell at noon, speakers will address the crowd at 1 p.m. and the walk to Parkersburg High School begins at 2 p.m.

Workman said she attempted suicide in June. Workman said she could have died from the incident and spent a few days in the intensive care unit of a local hospital.

Workman then underwent mental health treatment at a Columbus hospital and is now receiving treatment at the Cleveland Clinic.

She wants to return to work in the mental health field.

Workman said she had been suffering mental health issues for at least a year before trying to take her life.

“I was embarrassed to ask for help,” she said.

She is now an advocate to help those facing mental health conditions. Workman does not want people to feel they are alone in their struggles. “Live 4 Tomorrow” is the name of Workman’s team participating in Saturday’s Out of the Darkness Community Walk.

“I am happy to be alive,” Workman said.

Goff said her son had been in therapy and counseling at times for a mental health condition. She said she found out her son had stopped taking his medication a few weeks before his death.

Christian Morris died by suicide on July 23, 2018, shortly before he was to begin his senior year at Parkersburg South High School.

Goff said Morris was looking forward to joining the U.S. Marines Corps after graduating from high school. He had been a member of the Crew Team at South.

She is still haunted by the thought of “what if I had done something differently” in connection with her son’s life, Goff said.

Goff’s team “Walking With Christian” has raised a considerable amount of money for suicide prevention efforts during the Out of the Darkness Community Walk.

She and her husband, Rob, and daughter Sebrina Sims gave out bracelets to Parkersburg South High School students during the first week of the 2018-2019 school year with the words “be heard” and the 741741 textline for seeking help on them in hopes of helping others. Goff said she is a member of a suicide prevention task force through the Wood County school system, which has developed policies for suicide prevention.

Children facing mental health issues should talk to adults, Goff said.

Workman and Goff will be participating in Saturday’s walk, which is open to everyone, in the hope of preventing suicide. “We would encourage everyone to participate in the walk,” Goff said.

A total of 350 people have registered for Saturday’s walk in Parkersburg, said Jason Ferrebee, co-director of the event along with Dr. Heather McCarter. Many more walkers are expected to participate on the day of the walk.

A total of $41,000 has been raised so far in connection with the Mid-Ohio Valley Out of the Darkness Community Walk for suicide prevention efforts, said Ferrebee, who is a board member for the state chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and a national advocate for AFSP.

Water and rest stations will be placed along Washington Avenue on the one-mile walk route from City Park to Parkersburg High School on Saturday, Ferrebee said. The walkers plan to display their inspirational signs, such as “Stop Suicide,” along Dudley Avenue near PHS, he said.

Back at City Park after the walk, doves will be released, a disc jockey will play music and fundraising teams will be recognized. The event is expected to end around 4 p.m.

AFSP’s goal is to reduce suicides by 20 percent by 2025, Ferrebee said.

Paul LaPann can be reached at plapann@newsandsentinel.com

***

To Seek Help

* Call National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255

* 741741 Textline

* Call state hotline at 1-844-HELP-4WV

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