WORCESTER CO., Md. - It's no secret that suicide is a national concern, it is the 10th leading cause of death in all ages and third amongst teens and young adults.
The Jesse Klump Memorial Scholarship Fund organization is taking steps to prevent teen suicide.
"It's hard to talk about," said Kim Klump, president of the fund. "It's been a taboo for people to talk about for years and we're hoping to change that stigma."
Suicide prevention, it's what the Worcester County fund strives to accomplish. After losing her son in 2009, Klump started the fund, offering financial aid to worthy graduates of Snow Hill High School. Soon after, other faculty members started understanding the importance of suicide prevention.
"I actually worked at Snow Hill High School when we had a student who took his life by suicide," said Hope Hutira-Green, program manager for the fund.
She said she joined the fund to promote awareness.
Recently, a student in a Washington State middle school was bullied by his peers.His teacher did nothing to stop it.
"He said he wanted to kill himself," said mother Karla Kinney. "The kids had blamed him for this popular teacher and the suspension he received."
The boy's parents caught a warning sign early and were able to prevent tragedy. And now they're speaking out, but not everyone does.
Some warning signs come as an innocent gesture.
"It can be as simple as a sibling has an iPod and can never let the other sibling use the iPod and all of a sudden they say no go ahead you can have my iPod I am not going to need it anymore," said Hutira-Green.
The Jesse Klump Memorial Fund will be hosting the Eastern Shore's first Out of Darkness Community Walk.The event will be held at the Ocean City Boardwalk on Sept. 29 from 10-12 p.m.
Anyone interested in walking can register an hour before the race or online at www.asfp.org
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