About
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At AFM we work with people every day that are considering suicide. But after conducting more than 1,000 interventions for those at imminent risk I can say with 100% certainty that I have never met anyone that really wanted to die. Suicide is not the result of wanting to die. It is the result of loss. Thoughts can get muddled by trauma, stress, loss, poor health, strained relationships and a host of other things. Suicide is never the primary thought; it is always something else that leads to the thought. Having someone to talk with is vital to moving through such thoughts to the place of hope, life, and a future.
From our experience and that of others, we know that intervention saves lives. Unfortunately, suicide is a word that we don’t talk about, wrapped in mystery, stigma, shame, and misunderstanding. This is the first challenge; having a healthy and beneficial discussion about a crisis that every year takes more than 45,000 lives in the US. A disproportional number of losses come from the Veteran population and among First Responders more personnel are lost to suicide than line of duty death. |
The second challenge, raising public awareness that suicide is now an epidemic. More than 1 in 300 people attempt suicide each year in the US and 1 in 20 consider suicide. Suicide is now the 2nd leading cause of death for young people and more than 1,000 suicides each year occur on college campuses.
The third challenge, understanding that the professionals alone cannot solve the crisis. Building a culture of health takes the work of the entire community working as one. This is perhaps the greatest challenge of all - teaching ordinary people that they can have an extraordinary impact.
AFM’s Intervene Challenge addresses these challenges by training individuals from all walks of life in the skills that save lives. Just as CPR helps an individual having a heart attack, suicide intervention is first aid for the mind. The “professionals” are the last line of defense on the proverbial bridge in the moment of crisis. It is the ordinary citizen in the factories and fields, the civic and faith groups that can stop those at risk from going to the bridge in the first place.
The third challenge, understanding that the professionals alone cannot solve the crisis. Building a culture of health takes the work of the entire community working as one. This is perhaps the greatest challenge of all - teaching ordinary people that they can have an extraordinary impact.
AFM’s Intervene Challenge addresses these challenges by training individuals from all walks of life in the skills that save lives. Just as CPR helps an individual having a heart attack, suicide intervention is first aid for the mind. The “professionals” are the last line of defense on the proverbial bridge in the moment of crisis. It is the ordinary citizen in the factories and fields, the civic and faith groups that can stop those at risk from going to the bridge in the first place.
Board of Directors
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Chaplain (LTC) Kenneth Koon, D.Min
is the founder of Armed Forces Mission and serves as the Executive Director. |
Carl Hall serves as the Chairman of the Board of Directors. He is a retired Lt Colonel, US Army and a graduate of North Georgia College.
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Doug Brantley is a former professional baseball player and retired US Army Colonel. Doug serves as the AFM Treasurer.
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Dr Heather Burrell is a Army Veteran and licensed Chiropractor. Heather serves as Secretary of the Board.
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Rick Barnes is a US Army Veteran and owner of Minute Man Press. Rick serves as the Civic Community Liaison for AFM.
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MaCrae Koon is an an active duty Tech Sergent in the US Air Force and member of the USAF Honor Guard.
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