A Colorado-based suicide awareness organization has released their first public service announcement aimed at stopping teen suicides.
Hope4_2morrow’s 4-minute video, written and directed by Shannon Hawley, the organization’s founder, follows a teenage girl as she deals with a break up, bullying and suicidal thoughts. The video has no dialogue but shares statistics and information about the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.
Hawley decided to start the suicide awareness nonprofitafter reading about three students in Greeley Evans School District 6 who took their own lives. He is a suicide attempt survivor himself.
Hawley says he’s “very pleased” with the final product and hopes to produce more through his nonprofit organization.
“This was a first-time experiment for the entire crew,” he said in an email to KUNC. “I believe that we have an accurate and emotional story. I also think I was able to provide some shocking statistics as well as the resource to reach out to.”
Hawley said he launched the project to talk to students about issues affecting them where they’re at – online.
The 2017 Healthy Kids Colorado Survey asked 56,000 middle and high school students if they’d been affected by cyberbullying. About 20 percent of middle school students said they had. The rate for high school students is slightly lower — about 15 percent.
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Hawley’s video is available to stream on YouTube and the organization’s Facebook page.
