Suicide Prevention
We can all help prevent suicide. There is hope!
The Suicide Prevention Lifeline provides 24/7, free and confidential support for people in distress, prevention and crisis resources for you or your loved ones, and best practices for professionals.
What are some of the warning signs that someone is thinking of suicide?
- Isolating from friends, families and activities
- Statements of hopelessness, helplessness or worthlessness
- Giving away possessions or unusual visits to friends or family to say good-bye
- Making statements about wanting to die or ending it all
- Having a history of attempts of suicide
- Exhibiting signs of depression or drastic changes in behavior or appearance
Trainings - We are proud to offer trainings in suicide prevention, intervention, and postvention. Contact us today to request a training. To learn more click on the training's title.
Sources of Strength:
A best practice youth mental health promotion and suicide prevention program designed to harness the power of peer social networks to create healthy norms and culture, ultimately preventing suicide, violence, bullying, and substance misuse.
(American Foundation for Suicide Prevention),
About Talk Saves Lives™
Talk Saves Lives: An Introduction to Suicide Prevention is AFSP’s flagship suicide prevention education program that covers the scope of this leading cause of death, what the research has found to be the warning signs and risk factors of suicide, and the strategies that prevent it.
(American Foundation for Suicide Prevention),
Intended for high school classes or community settings with groups of teens, ages from 14 to 18, It’s Real: Teens and Mental Health for High School Students is a 45-minute program that provides young people with mental health education and resources. The program raises awareness about mental health issues, how to start a conversation about mental health, the importance of self-care, and how to reach out for help.
QPR / Question Persuade Refer (SPCNY),
QPR stands for Question, Persuade, and Refer — the 3 simple steps anyone can learn to help save a life from suicide.
Just as people trained in CPR and the Heimlich Maneuver help save thousands of lives each year, people trained in QPR learn how to recognize the warning signs of a suicide crisis and how to question, persuade, and refer someone to help.
Firearm Safety Through the Lens of Suicide Prevention (SPCNY)
The 90-minute workshop is intended for family members and loved ones of individuals with access to firearms who may be at an elevated risk for suicide and is co-facilitated by an expert in suicide prevention and a local firearms expert.
This workshop is intended to empower family members and loved ones of community members to talk about firearm safety for suicide prevention.
Grief Support After Death by Suicide
This is a peer to peer monthly support group for anyone who has lost someone to suicide.
Meetings are held monthly. For more information please call BRiDGES at 315.697.3947
Madison County Suicide Prevention Coalition
The coalition has been working to raise awareness and reduce the rate of suicide. They have organized trainings, delivered resource materials, held speaker events, and supported survivors of suicide, among other activities. Members of the coalition and others are working to develop a comprehensive strategic plan for suicide prevention and postvention in Madison County. Call BRiDGES to learn more!
L.O.S.S. Team
L.O.S.S. – Local Outreach to Suicide Survivors – is an active suicide postvention model. This model involves two or more trained volunteers, called a L.O.S.S. Team, who proactively go to the scene, or shortly after, of a suicide to provide immediate support to those left behind. At least one of these two trained volunteers is a survivor of a suicide loss. L.O.S.S. Team volunteers are present to those left behind in a nonintrusive manner. They provide support, resources, and understanding.
Why are L.O.S.S. Teams Important?
A L.O.S.S. Team can provide a lifeline to the newly bereaved. Having a person who has lost someone to suicide present in the immediate aftermath can provide an instillation of hope. Through shared understanding and experience, L.O.S.S. Team volunteers can be a
calming and reassuring presence. Those who have lost someone special to suicide can provide a sense of normalcy and hope simply by introducing themselves as someone who has also been impacted by a suicide death.
While each L.O.S.S. Team has its own unique characteristics based on the needs of its community, there are three commonalities that they all share:
- They proactively reach out to the newly bereaved by suicide.
- At least one of the volunteers who responds is a suicide loss survivor (peer model).
- L.O.S.S. Teams exists for the same purpose: To be an instillation of hope.
The L.O.S.S. Team is activated by first responders.
For questions on the L.O.S.S. Team, call 315-697-3947.
Community Events
- BRiDGES hosts the STEPtember Walk in September, SAVE THE DATE, 9.13.2025! More information coming.
- International Suicide Loss Survivor Day – November 22, 2025