An AFSP Exprience

Leeseburg VA Walk

On October 4th 2015 my sister, my mom, and I went to Leesburg VA for an AFSP walk. AFSP stands for American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. We were volunteers at the bead table. The bead table  has bead necklaces in different colors. Each color stood for something. A couple are blue, gold, teal, and purple.  Blue stands for supporting the cause(everyone had that). Teal means you have friends and/or family struggling with mental illness. Gold means you lost a parent by suicide. And purple means a friend/family member lost by suicide. I saw kids take gold which broke my heart. Also a bead which meant lost of sibling. I hated to  see people and kids take that. And there were many people with purples. I felt so bad. The good part was that I had fun. It made me feel really good that lots of people were there. And they cared about helping people and stopping suicide.

 My sister and me in Leesburg, VA

 Me at the Leesburg walk. With my sister in the back.

My sister and me at the bead table.

DC Walk

October 10th my grandparents, parents, sister, and I went to an AFSP walk in DC. My mom volunteered and my sister and I helped at the children’s table. There were little yellow boxes that you could decorate and then put candy inside. Also face painting. Before the walk began, the head people gave out awards for the top fundraisers. Then my sister and I were lead up the stairs to the stage. They introduced us to the crowd. Then the top fundraisers, a head lady, my sister, and I grabbed little boxes and opened them up. Inside were sleeping butterflies. Then the walk began. 4 miles later, the walk ended. I had a blast there.

Here's a video about the butterfly part in DC.

Thanks 

I liked both of the walks. And I hope more and more people come next year into the next. It’s important that lots of people come because then it will raise awareness of suicide. Also it will provide comfort and support for people affected by suicide. It provides comfort and support by people sharing their stories and learning about AFSP’s support programs.

Thank you to those who donated. You’re helping to lower suicide rates.