‘You are loved’
Victoria Kapp, a junior psychology major and Bonner Scholar at Waynesburg University, addresses the teens and adults who attended a teen suicide prevention event held recently at the West Sides building in Franklin Township. The event was organized by members of the university’s Bonner program as an outreach event for teens. (Photo by Jenny Schouppe)
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“You are loved.”
These words were said frequently during a suicide awareness event March 27 at the West Sides building in Franklin Township.
The event was organized by members of Waynesburg University’s Bonner program as an outreach event for teens. Projects surrounding an ongoing social issue in the world are a requirement under the Bonner program.
More than three dozen teens and adults attended the event. Victoria Kapp, a junior psychology major and Bonner Scholar at Waynesburg University who was one of the Bonner students instrumental in organizing the event, stressed the importance of love to the teens in attendance.
“I want you to remember that you are loved,” Kapp said. “If you don’t remember anything else from tonight, just remember that you are loved.”
The event featured musicians who performed an acoustic mix of uplifting songs and worship songs.
“We asked all these musicians to come play because this is a place to be honest,” Kapp said. “People are honest in music about things that they normally wouldn’t be.”
The first to perform were two members of the Pittsburgh-based, American rock band known as the “The R4 Project.”
Members Jordan and Shane Smallwood sang two originals songs, then followed up with three popular worship songs.
Following the duo, sophomores Austin Orth and Lori Williams took the stage. The pair sang two upbeat songs followed by two worship songs.
“The songs that were performed at the event were inspiring and spoke a lot about hope and faith,” said Nermeen Bushra, sophomore psychology major and Bonner Scholar. “I’m glad we were able to have musicians who were willing to help raise awareness about such a sensitive topic.”
Halfway through the event there was a break from the music and the mood in the room turned more serious.
A movie was played about a boy named Logan Daugherty. The movie was made by Kapp and spoke about a friend of hers who was a senior in high school when he took his own life on Dec. 2, 2010.
“I have a big passion for suicide prevention because of my friend Logan,” Kapp said. “It happened three years ago, so clearly suicide is not just something that happens and you get over it.”
The video included testimonies from Daugherty’s friends and family.
Daugherty’s mother, Kim, spoke about how much of an impact Logan’s death has had on her and her family.
“Logan was a great kid,” Kim Daugherty said. “And when he died our whole world just changed so much.”
Logan Daugherty’s friends and family spoke of his outgoing personality and his “big heart” for God. They said they never realized that he was dealing with big issues.
“We don’t talk a lot about suicide,” Kapp said. “We approach the subject like if we don’t talk about it then it won’t happen.”
Kapp wanted to share Logan Daugherty’s story with teens so that no others feel that suicide is their only option.
“Our goal for tonight is to bring light to the issue and the heaviness that suicide holds,” Kapp said. “We are here tonight to show that it is a real issue and it needs to be talked about in order for it to stop.”
When the video came to an end, Kapp stood before the audience and spoke about the impact suicide can have on not only the person contemplating suicide but the friends and families as well.
Kapp explained to the teens that there are so many people in their lives that love them, and that they need to take the time and think about their parents, friends and mentors that would miss them if they were to take their own life.
“Logan clearly lost sight of that,” Kapp said. “He didn’t realize how many people loved and cared for him.”
Kapp mentioned how everyone has their own story and challenged the teens to be a character in the stories of those who sit alone at lunch, or those who walk down the halls looking lonely and the ones who are bullied.
“I feel that if more people reached out to Logan the way he reached out to others than he would still be here,” Kapp said.
According to Kapp, teens need to reach out to each other and love each other because one never knows what others are truly going through. She even encourages teens that a simple smile could change a person’s day.
“So for those who have rough stories, it should not end because of it,” Kapp said. “Your story will have a happy ending and all those twists and turns will make it even more beautiful in the end.”
Kapp encouraged the teens to let people in and open the lines of communication between themselves and their parents.
The event finished with performances from four more musicians.
For the 37 teens and adults in attendance, it was clearly evident that an integral part of Kapp’s speech – where she provided some startling statistics about suicide – made an impact.
“In the amount of time it took to watch the video, 26 people in the U.S. committed suicide, and in the amount of time we spend here tonight, 270 people worldwide killed themselves,” Kapp said to the audience. “So worldwide, 270 people will be dead because they thought there was nothing for them to live for or thought there was no hope for them, and in my opinion that is 270 people who are gone but should still be here.”