Summer is in full swing Riding to stop suicides
MULLAN - The small town of Mullan has lost five young men to suicide since 1983. Beth and Jeff Elliott's son, Joshua, is the latest, and they hope, the last.
Joshua killed himself on Sept. 21, 2008.
In his memory, the Elliotts are hosting Josh's Ride, an ATV ride over the old Mullan road from Mullan, to Saltese, Mont., and back.
Beth Elliott said there were 136 riders last year and she is hoping to get that many or more at this year's event and raise awareness abut suicide.
"Suicide has such a stigma attached to it and we feel the need for more education in our area along with support for those who need it," she said.
This will be the second year for the Joshua Elliott Memorial Scholarship Ride. They will start at The Outlaw Bar and Grill in Mullan at 9 a.m. Saturday, for breakfast. People can also register for the ATV ride at that time. Breakfast and the ride are a $5 donation each.
After the ride, which will end at the Smoke Shop Tavern in Mullan, there will be a raffle and door prizes. Elliott said people can buy tickets at Outlaw and the Smoke Shop until 7 p.m. Saturday.
Elliott said that before her son died they did the annual Smoke Out ATV ride and raised money for the Mullan Community Foundation. After Joshua passed away, she said, they changed it to a memorial ride to raise money for Mullan High School Students to go to college. The first year they gave two scholarships for $500 each.
Elliott said she tried to go to counseling after her son's death, but couldn't afford it. She knows there are other people in a similar situation, so she's working on a support group.
"There's no program whatsoever," said Elliott, "We desperately need it in the Silver Valley."
Elliott said she decided to change the funding to go to the national program that runs Community Out of Darkness walks, The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, when she saw there was no support groups for families who have lost a loved one to suicide in the Silver Valley.
"One of Josh's best friends did it in 2000," said Elliott, "We just get tired of the stigma, like, they did it to themselves, oh well."
She said 50 percent of the money will stay in the Silver Valley. The other half goes to national programs for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.
According to the Out Of Darkness website, a person dies by suicide every 16 minutes in the United States, claiming more than 33,000 lives each year. They also estimated that an attempt at suicide is made every minute.
Elliott said that teams from all over can sign up for the walk, or can join Team Mullan at www.outofthedarkness.org. She said they can also donate online or sign up to volunteer.
Elliott says the key to understanding suicide is education.
"Please educate yourself on suicide, and on depression. We don't want any more of this to happen ever again."