News : If you need a sign, here it is

If you need a sign that you matter, here it is!

One of the most painful parts of life is the death of someone close to us. Usually, it happens through illness or an accident, but sometimes it's brought on because life was for some reason just too hard to deal with. When that happens, families are left with the pain of not knowing the whys and always asking themselves if they could have prevented the actions that took away their loved ones. 

Depression is an illness that takes you to the point that you can't see anything other than stopping the pain. The only thing you can see is a desire to make the thoughts stop. Sometimes there just doesn't seem to be an answer other than, just needing a sign. 

According to Wikipedia, the cases of suicide have remained the same during the pandemic or have gone down. But according to the Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy, he said that "between 2007 and 2018, suicide rates among American youth ages 10 to 24 increased from 6.8 to 10.7 per 100,000, and early estimates from the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics suggest more than 6,600 people in the same age group died by suicide in 2020. Early clinical data from the CDC shows that in early 2021, emergency department visits in the U.S. for suspected suicide attempts were 51% higher for adolescent girls and 4% higher for adolescent boys compared to the same time period in early 2019." COVID has not helped the mental wellbeing of the population.

An area woman decided that to help area residents, teenagers and adults alike, she wanted to put a billboard up with a message for anyone struggling. It is located on Highway 218 near T-J Gas.

It says, "If you're looking for a sign, here it is, you matter." Back in 2020, Jamie Stander sent out a Facebook post asking for anyone in the area that would like to be part of a Suicide Prevention photoshoot, to contact her. Her message was, "The world is better with you in it!" She planned to have any teenager who wanted to hold up encouraging signs for anyone struggling. The signs said, "I am here," "I care," or "I will listen." Those who came to participate were students from Center Point-Urbana, Vinton-Shellsburg, and several adults.