NORTHUMBERLAND – Members of the American Legion Post 44 say it’s time to address a disturbing trend in our area – suicide among teenagers and young people. They’ll be hosting a Town Hall Forum next Wednesday at 7 p.m. at the Post 44 building in Northumberland.
PA American Legion District Deputy Commander Earl Bennett, “We had a suicide out in Shamokin, a 21-year-old young man took his life, and less than 24 hours after that, a young man in Selinsgrove took his life. I went to the post and I said, ‘We gotta do something.’ So here we are.”
A recent study shows suicide incidents among teens have gone up from 22 per day to 35 per day in the U.S.
Legion members say the panel will include police and first responders, prosecutors, clergy, and behavioral health specialists.
Bennett says he’s even gotten an area school superintendent to join, “School counselors usually shy away from this. I thought maybe I could them to have somebody step forward, and to my surprise, the (Selinsgrove Area School District) Superintendent Dr. (Frank) Jankowski. He stepped forward and he asked if he can take the place of a counselor and I gladly accepted that.”
You can hear more about the event on the WKOK.com Podcast Page or wherever you listen to podcasts.
