It was my privilege Monday night at the regular meeting of the Weiser City Council to join Governor Brad Little in proclaiming April as Veteran Suicide Awareness Month.
Regularly, I receive requests to issue proclamations about a cause. If the request is local, I am happy to join with our residents to bring important issues to the forefront such as Angel Wings and Rose Advocates but I don’t respond to requests from across the country that are not connected to our community.
I read last week about the Governor issuing the Veterans Suicide Proclamation and immediately contacted the Director of our State Veterans Department to ask to join in the proclamation. This is an issue I personally feel connected with.
Not long ago one of my former students struggled after his return from deployment, bravely serving our country and lost the struggle. He was a very talented young man who loved his country and his family. I can’t begin to imagine his thoughts and feelings after what he saw and lived through. He was surrounded by loving, caring people but the struggle was too great.
Many of our veterans go through this and have for years but the numbers are increasing. One article, I read reported that states such as Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, and Utah have had higher rates of suicides in our veterans which they contribute partially to our independent attitude and determination to ‘do it on our own’ belief. We are all proud of our independence which sometimes discourages people from seeking help when it is needed. This is true of our whole population and suicide has become a problem all across that population.
The Idaho Veterans Administration (VA) has 48 different programs and support groups to help veterans battle against suicide. However, there are some that haven’t been able to get connected to the help they need. The staggering numbers show the need to find new approaches which the VA is seeking to find.
Suicide is a problem. We need to be aware and reach out to help those suffering find help to heal. The VA hot line is 1-800-273-8255. The Idaho Suicide hot line is 208-=398-4375. Please help our veterans and other friends and neighbors find help.
The Street Department is busy cutting our those always appearing “potholes”. They are currently waiting for the weather and asphalt availability to get them filled. The sweepers are working to get the streets cleaned too. It takes about three weeks to do the initial cleaning all across town after the winter and about 9-10 days each time we do them after that. Cars continually parked on the street make it difficult to clean the streets from curb to curb.
Companies that have done boring in the alleys have been coming in to smooth out many of the rough areas. We are also doing some grading of our alleys after the winter. Alley clean up will begin in a couple of weeks as the weather and schedule allow.
Don’t forget the firefighter breakfast this Saturday, April 13 from 7-11 am at the Vendome Events Center. This is the fundraiser for the purchase of fireworks for the July 4th and Christmas displays. Come on down and enjoy a good breakfast. If you are unable to attend, the department gladly accepts donations at anytime throughout the year to ensure another outstanding year of fireworks celebration.
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