In the struggle to prevent suicide, one of the most effective tools is also one of the simplest.
Suicide has emerged as a pressing health crisis facing Indiana, and the entire United States. Between 2017 and 2019, more than 3,000 people died by suicide throughout the state, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In Johnson County, 13.4 people per 100,000 died by suicide between 2014 and 2018.
But while suicide tears apart lives and has far-reaching consequences, local experts have found a valuable method in addressing it — encouraging people to connect socially.
“Supporting each other is the biggest protective factor, and coming together and connecting. Obviously, it’s been a bad time on several fronts, but there needs to be a lot more awareness about this,” said Hope Thompson, project coordinator for Upstream Prevention. “Suicide is an issue in our community. It can happen to anybody, even if people think it won’t happen to anyone they know. So you have to build those protective factors.”
Fostering community connections is the central focus of the inaugural Hope 4 Johnson County: We’re Stronger Together event. The free gathering planned Sunday at Dollie’s Farm in Franklin will provide activities, games, ice cream and live music all while raising awareness of suicide.
The centerpiece of the event will be a flower wall, where flower by flower, the tragedy of suicide will come into focus. Attendees can place a fresh-cut flower from the farm on the display to draw attention to the issue.
“We wanted to raise awareness in a way that’s engaging and more fun. Talking about suicide isn’t necessarily fun. So this is a way to get people’s attention without making it a sad, gloomy kind of event and focusing on those protective factors,” Thompson said.
Hope 4 Johnson County came together as members of the Suicide Prevention Coalition and Upstream Prevention, an organization that aims to support positive mental health, decrease suicides and address substance abuse in Johnson County, planned their activities for Suicide Awareness and Prevention Month in September. Their hope was to create an outdoor activity that would bring people together.
At the same time, they were mindful of the ongoing pandemic and how to hold a large event safely.
“Our biggest focus was on connecting people. Those supports we have with other people is the biggest protective factor,” Thompson said. “We wanted to do an event around that that embraces social connections but in an outside, safe kind of way.”
The solution came in partnering with Dollie’s Farm. Located on the outskirts of Franklin, the 5-acre farm features nearly 70 types of flowers and plants, everything from mint to asters to coneflowers, with the highlight being row after row of lavender. Owners Tricia and Tim Wilson host flower-centric events throughout the year in their beautifully kept gardens, and offered up the farm for free for the event.
With the location in mind, organizers mapped out activities to keep people of all ages entertained. Benjamin’s Ice Cream truck will be on site providing sweets for visitors, and music will be playing throughout the event. The first 100 people who attend will receive a $4 coupon, to go toward ice cream or a you-pick bouquet from Dollie’s Farm.
Information on suicide prevention will be available, and people can pick up “A Flicker of Hope,” a children’s book by Julia Cook that focuses on resilience and normalizing asking for help, which will be available for free while supplies last. People can also enter raffles to win prizes such as Indy Eleven tickets and passes to Holiday World.
The farm already features games such as yard dominoes, cornhole and giant Jenga, which will be set up and available for people to mingle and play together.
“We wanted people to be able to engage in those kinds of things together,” Thompson said.
The most visually striking aspect of the event is the flower wall. People will be able to add flowers to the structure,
“It’s a symbol to honor someone they lost,” Thompson said, “or if they want to raise awareness or spread hope.”
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Hope 4 Johnson County: We’re Stronger Together
What: A community event encouraging social connections while raising awareness about suicide.
When: 3-5 p.m. Sunday
Where: Dollie’s Farm, 3961 N. CR 425E, Franklin
What will be included: Visitors will be able to play lawn games, enjoy ice cream from Benjamin’s and enter free raffles for prizes. Information will be available on suicide prevention resources. People are also encouraged to add to a flower wall to honor someone lost to suicide, to raise awareness of it or to spread hope to others.
Cost: Free
Information: upstreamprevention.org
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