One Night for Life: AFSP’s Overnight Walk in Boston to Prevent Suicide

The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention is holding this year's "Out of the Darkness" overnight fundraiser walk right here in Boston. It's a critical fundraiser for the organization which works to provide resources for those who are struggling and hold space to have difficult conversations around a subject that still has a heavy stigma attached to it. People from all walks of life will come together for this event to share their stories, grieve, empathize, smile, and form connections throughout the 16-mile course. Erin Kenny, Overnight Senior Manager at the Foundation, joins Nichole to talk about the upcoming event and how the Foundation shines a light on mental health.

Episode Transcript

(00:07):
From WBZ News Radio in Boston.This is New England Weekend. Each week
we come together and talk about allthe topics important to you and the place
where you live. It's so goodto be back with you this week.
I'm Nicole Davis. Millions of peoplearound the country and the world are touched
by suicide each and every year,perhaps even you or somebody close to you.
The stigma though surrounding suicide, oftenstops us from talking about it and

(00:31):
going out to find strength and help, and community organizations like the American Foundation
for Suicide Prevention are out there tryingto open up space for that talk and
provide resources for people who need it. One of the ways they're doing this
is with their overnight walk called Outof the Darkness. This year, that
walk is being held right here inBoston. It changes cities each year.
They're coming back to the Hub.People from all walks of life and from

(00:55):
all over the country are coming toBoston to join forces. They'll be sharing
their stories. With each step,we can come closer to a world without
suicide. Aaron Kenny, the OvernightSenior manager of the Foundation, is here
with us now. We're going totalk about the work they do talk about
the Overnight walk erin thank you foryour time, tell us a bit more
about how you're involved here. Ipersonally get to manage the foundation's national fundraising

(01:19):
event, the Overnight Walk. Theorganization AFSP itself actually has three different walk
types. We have community walks centernationwide and in Puerto Rico, as well
as campus walks that take place inthe spring and are on university, in
high school and college campuses. Andthen we have the Overnight which is that
flagship event and happens once a yearin a different city. And this is

(01:42):
just some of the work we do. Besides you know, funding and supporting
our walks, AFSP works in advocacy. We do have a DC office.
Our national office is in New Yorkwhere we have a programs team that are
working hard to make sure that thepublic is educated. And then we also
work with survivor so people with theirown lived experience as well as those who
have lost someone to suicide. Ithink it's very important work that you're doing

(02:07):
because we just got out of May, which is Mental Health Awareness Month,
and Men's Health is Men's Health Month, I believe, is in June,
and mental health I think should befront and center right now. I think
that, especially post COVID, alot of people are still struggling. What
are you seeing through your work overat the foundation right now? Yeah,
so thank you for saying that it'simportant. That is what we're seeing.

(02:28):
You know, we are seeing thatthere are struggles happening. But the beautiful
sort of part of it is thatpeople are reaching out for help. So
while we know that COVID impacted alot of mental health, and we know
that suicide rates have gone up slightly, we know that more people are reaching
out for help and trying to supportthemselves and others, which is the best

(02:49):
part. Yeah, and what doyou see when it comes to young people
as well? I've talked with afew people about how there is a kind
of a mental health crisis with teensand younger people, especially with social media
everything going on. I mean,I'm almost forty, and growing up as
a teen was super different than itis for teens right now and all that
other stuff going on. I'm soglad we didn't have social media when I

(03:10):
was a kid. Oh, tellme, like how kids are doing right
now when it comes to suicide andmental health and all that. Yeah,
I agree about the social media growingup. I you know that for youth
that ages ten to twenty four,suicide is the third leading cause of death,
but those who are younger have lowersuicide rates than those who are older,

(03:32):
So it is a third leading causeof death. But I think that
now and with today's world and withsocial media too, which does have its
negative impacts, it also has itspositive impacts because people are talking more and
I think being more communicative about itand actually saying like I'm struggling, this
is what I'm feeling, These arethe warning signs, this is how we
can help. So while it isa leading cause of death for youth,

(03:54):
I do think that more youth alsohave the bravery to say it, you
know, they they will speak upand they will say it, and I
think that's super important for anyone toknow, and that it's okay, you're
not alone and you should tell someone. Yeah. I really do feel like
gen Z is pushing that almost likethey are kind of leading the charge when
it comes to talking about mental healthand almost breaking generational curses in a way,

(04:15):
like I think that talking about mentalhealth for a lot of us older
people was kind of frowned upon likeI don't talk about that, just put
on a happy face and everything's good. Kids these days are really cool when
it comes to that sort of thing, like I look that they're taking that
charge exactly, exactly, and ithelps you know when there's like influencers and
other people out there that are alsotalking about their mental health and saying like,
you know, just because I'm inthis spotlight or this sort of work,

(04:39):
I also have mental health. Everybodydoes. It's just as important as
your physical health, you know,yeah, totally. So let's talk about
the walk itself. You do theseall over the country. It's coming to
Boston in here in June on thetwenty second. Let's talk about like how
the walk is put together. Whatdo you try to accomplish with the walk?
Sure, so the walk itself iskind biased, but it's amazing,

(05:01):
but it is. It's actually sixteenmiles overnight. So basically these participants are
fundraising. They're raising funds for AFSPso we can save more lives and have
those programs and that research. Andwe're walking sixteen miles overnight, walking truly
out of the darkness, and theentire time we're spending, you know,

(05:25):
connecting with other people, letting peopleknow they're not alone, honoring and our
loved ones that may have passed,and celebrating our own mental health and our
own wins. So yeah, that'sit's I think I try to provide a
healing and hopeful space for all ofour participants, and I think, you
know, if we can be atiny part of someone's healing journey, that's

(05:47):
a win. A literal and physicaland emotional journey. Sixteen miles is certainly
not a small feed, but youknow, when you've got people around you,
it probably makes it a little biteasier. Yeah, exactly, It's
almost like you, I think likeby mile ten, people are sort of
like, well, we've come thisfar and it is what it is,
and we're together, and it's justit's so beautiful to see people meeting for

(06:10):
the first time and by the endof the walk they're just hugging together and
crying and laughing. But let medefinitely say it's really not about the mileage.
It's about the community and the feelingand just being there. So we
do have root support. We havestopped along the way, we have vehicles,
you know, people can hop inif needed. So yes, we
encourage you to walk to sixteen.But safety and health first obviously always,

(06:33):
and it does help that, youknow, it is getting warmer this time
of year, but at not somuch, so it's not like you have
to worry about, you know,those five k's during the weekend days when
the sun is blaring on you.It's gonna be nice and cool at night.
Yeah, it's nice because we alwaystell our participants layer up. Actually,
we were in Boston one year intwenty fifteen and it was torrential rain

(06:55):
the entire night, and people stilltalk about it as like they're accomplish schmid,
like we crossed the finish line ofBoston fifteen like because it was so
terrible, but it was also beautifulbecause they did it together. You know.
One thing I also really love aswell is you have special ceremonies to
open and close the walk, Sotell us about those and why you choose
to do that. Sure, sowe open within our opening ceremony, so

(07:18):
we will Basically our CEO is thereand he wants to obviously thank everyone for
participating in fundraising and walking, andthen he does mention about, you know,
the work we've done in the lastyear and what afsp is doing and
how funds are used, because that'simportant. And then we have what we
call an honor bead ceremony, Sowe have ten different bead colors that represent

(07:43):
different connections to the cause. Soeveryone wears these honor beads throughout the night,
so you know that you're not alone, and you can sort of see
the crowd in different beat colors andconnect with people. And sometimes you don't
even have to say a word.You know, you just make eye contacts,
you see the bead color, andyou know you're supported and you're not
alone. So, for instance,green is a personal struggle, attempt or

(08:07):
lived experience, right, is theloss of a spouse or partner, White,
the loss of a child and soon. Wow, that's intense actually,
but in the best way because havingthat ability to communicate, like you
said, without saying a word,just looking and knowing that somebody has in
a way lived your lived experience.I mean, there's nothing really that can

(08:28):
top that. Just knowing that puresense of hey, you get it,
Yeah, I get it. That'sexactly it. That's what we say about
the event. It's sort of aplace where people just get it and you
can say as much as you like, or not a word at all.
You know, it's just you knowthat someone else understands and you can be
yourself too, you can kind oflet that guard down because I feel like
masking is a big thing when itcomes to mental health. I think that

(08:52):
people feel they have to hide what'sgoing on with them or not talk about
it because there is still a hugestigma around suicide. I mean, let's
just be honest about it. Andpeople who are struggling with their mental health
might feel like, hey, nobodywants to hear about this, or oh,
I'm going to look weak by talkingabout it, and this is really
a safe space for that, exactly, exactly. This is the place where
you would come to be your true, authentic self, your genuine self,

(09:15):
and share as much of your storyas you're comfortable sharing. Yeah, so
let's talk about the fundraising really quick, because we are clearly chatting just before
the event. But if people stillwant to get in and fundraise, what
does the money go toward? Yeah? Sure, so eighty cents of every
dollar goes back to AFSP. Sowe are using your money for research initiatives
and grants. We are using itfor our advocacy and our state capitals.

(09:39):
We are using it for survivor initiativesof different programs to make sure that our
survivors feel supported and connected. Soall of these different things. And I
think I said it, but ofcourse educational programs for schools, for students,
for educators, and then even moreso now for healthcare workers too.
So education is very important too.So you know, we're trying to use

(10:01):
the funds responsibly to make sure thatwe're really saving lives. Yeah, for
sure. So then let's talk aboutthe nitty gritty about the walk itself.
My first question food. Food isvery important, of course, and if
I'm walking sixteen miles with you,I gotta eat, Like, how am
I going to do this? Thatis so true. So what we do
is we will have stops every twoto three miles. The smaller quick stops

(10:26):
have hydration so water and gatorade andof course restrooms, and then the larger
quick stops they'll have snacks and thegood stuff like uncrustables, cheese, it
oranges, you know, and theyhave basic medical support, restrooms, water,
gatorid. And then at the halfwaypoint is midnight snack where we'll have
a nice box lunch for everyone,so different sandwich choices with different snacks including

(10:50):
veggies and brownies and things like that. Very cool. And then at the
end, is there like a littleparty or a gathering space at the end
or are you just doing the closingceremony and then taking off? So sort
of so people are crossing the finishline at different times. So while you
cross the finish line, you areseeing these white lumin area bags lit up,

(11:11):
and these bags represent lives lost aswell as those who are still with
us, and so just sort oftaking in the impact of all the bags.
It's a time for reflection really,so people sort of take their time
and walk through the finish line andlook at the bags. But then we
do have a hot breakfast waiting foryou, and we do have what we

(11:31):
call a victory shirt. It's along sleeve shirt that says I walked all
night, you know. And thenwe do have our closing ceremony, which
you know, Bob our CEO willspeak again. We usually have one of
our participants speak about their own livedexperiences, and then you know, as
the sun is rising, we closeout. Okay, beautiful, and what
if people have food allergies or maybethey're vegan or they have other food restrictions.

(11:56):
Do you have that kept in mindas well? Yeah, so we
do have a vegan op for thesandwiches, but we also have a special
food transport option. Someone from ourmedical team can actually take your food to
midnight snack for you. So ifyou'd rather bring your own snacks and your
own lunch by all means. It'sjust a little form and then you send
it to me actually, okay.And then when it comes to fundraising,

(12:16):
are you is there like a fundraiserrequirement or can you just show up and
walk that day? Like, whatis the requirement here? Sure? Sure,
So with the Overnight, we dohave that fundraising requirement and everyone has
to register online at theovernight dot orgokay, and then there is one thousand
dollars fundraising minimum per walker or sevenhundred if you're a student or a member

(12:37):
of the military. Okay. Andthere's a registration fee as well. I
see here fifty dollars, but therewas a discount if you're a student as
well. That's cracked out thirty five. Or you can just use the promo
code launch and then'll get you halfoff. And this is not an event
that you take your small children to. That's important to note. Not thank
you for bringing that up. Yeah, walkers do have to be the age

(13:00):
of fourteen and older, okay,and they do need to have an adult
that's eighteen year older with them that'salso registered met their fundraising minimum, and
the whole, the whole shebang.Yep, I was gonna say that,
and I didn't know the whole shebang, the whole thing. I got you,
I got you, okay. Soyeah, So if people want to
learn more about the Out of theDarkness Walk about all the great work you're

(13:22):
doing at the American Foundation for SuicidePrevention, how can people connect with you?
Yeah? Of course, So youcan always reach us at theovernight dot
org or AFSP dot org. Allright. And on social media. I'm
sure you're on there as well.Yeah, so on Facebook it's out of
the Darkness Overnight Walk, okay.And on Instagram it's at AFFP National all

(13:45):
right. And then quickly the detailsfor the walk here in Boston. What
do people have to know for datesand times and places and all that sort
of stuff. Yeah, of course. So we will be at Boston University's
Nickerson Field on Saturday, June twentysecond. Walker check in begins at four
pm and our opening ceremony will startabout seven fifteen pm. Phenomenal, all

(14:07):
right. Happy to have you onthe show and thank you for being here.
Thank you so much for taking thetime. I really appreciate speaking with
you. Have a safe and healthyweekend. Please join me again next week
for another edition of the show.I'm Nicole Davis from WBZ News Radio on iHeartRadio.