Student organization honored for raising $25,000 for suicide prevention

Wednesday, February 1, 2017 Student organization honored for raising $25,000 for suicide prevention

Organizers of the Out of the Darkness Walk at the University of Nebraska

Out of the Darkness, a student organization now in its second year at Nebraska, was honored by the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) for raising more than $25,000 and being a Top 10 Fundraising Walk in 2016. The campus group ranked fifth among campuses nationwide. An award was presented to Nebraska representatives at the 2017 AFSP Chapter Leadership Conference in Orange County.

When organization founder Shelby Williby began attending the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in the fall of 2014, she was motivated to increase suicide prevention and mental health awareness. She recalled attending a community walk in Omaha but hadn’t found anything similar in Lincoln.

With the help of the AFSP Nebraska Chapter from Omaha and the Active Minds student organization, a Registered Student Organization dedicated to reducing stigma around mental health, Williby began planning a campus walk.

“I started the walk to raise money for a cause that was important to me, and to give our community a space to open up the conversation around suicide prevention. Suicide is something that's incredibly painful to deal with, and there's a taboo surrounding it that makes it hard to open up about,” said Williby.

The group’s initial goal was to raise $5,000. However, they quickly exceeded their goal as participation boomed to more than 600 attendees with $25,000 raised. In their first attempt, the students planned the fifth largest suicide prevention walk in the country.

The energy behind the walk even inspired a separate student organization called Out of the Darkness to develop. This group will focus on awareness of suicide prevention and raising money to fund educational programs about mental health.

“This year, we are hoping again to raise $25,000. We're also looking to get more members from the surrounding community!” said Williby. The next Out of the Darkness Campus Walk is planned for April 23, 2017.

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