Student barracks designed and presented their Suicide Awareness Prevention Month themed posters to be judged by Training Support Center (TSC) Great Lakes leadership increasing attention to the month’s messaging September 25.

Held at the Epicenter, the event featured bowling, pizza, movies, live music and various other activities focused on raising attention to the theme "Small Steps Save Lives."  The USS Boorda Hall was chosen as the winning barracks in the poster contest.

“As we observe Suicide Prevention Month, it is a great time to reenergize our efforts to connect with one another, build healthy relationships and promote a sense of community,” TSC Commanding Officer Capt. David Dwyer said. “We also need to renew our commitment to ourselves and reflect on our individual self-care practices. As we know, suicide prevention isn’t a 30-day blitz; it’s the starting point for year-long conversations on how to recognize and navigate stressors in our own lives and in the lives of our shipmates. We all play a part in creating a supportive environment where those who need help have the courage to seek help and feel supported.” 

The "Small Steps Save Lives" call-to-action implores Sailors, leaders and families to strengthen their connections with one another and "break the code of silence" when it comes to discussions and actions that may prevent suicide. The campaign focuses on ongoing engagement, active communication, peer support and personal responsibility, underscoring the impact strong connections can have on facilitating early recognition and intervention when there are indications of distress.

Multiple formal suicide awareness training events are held throughout the year. Although this event is held in a more relaxed environment it does not take away from the importance of the subject matter.

 “Life can be difficult; contain a lot of challenges especially being the military,” said Navy Military Training Instructor Chief Fire Controlman Rosalie Sprouse, suicide prevention coordinator for TSC. “So, if we know the warning signs and risks factors we can prevent some of the thoughts from becoming actions. In order to get a head of the problem it is going to take the Navy as a community, everybody being trained and aware of the warning signs, and feeling comfortable engaging and getting people the help that they need.”

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