Community Forum on December 7 will foster conversation on public health crisis
Columbus, OH (November 23, 2015)—The Columbus Foundation has joined with others in the community to prioritize a discussion about central Ohio’s ongoing struggle with suicide and its silencing implications.
An $8,500 grant from the Richard C. and Nanciann Kaufman Ninde Fund of The Columbus Foundation supports Silent Suffering, a community forum on Monday, December 7, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Performance Hall in The Ohio Union at The Ohio State University.
“A conversation around this important issue is vital as we work in partnership to strengthen our community—and save lives,” said Douglas F. Kridler, president and CEO of The Columbus Foundation. “This forum will bring the topic of suicide into public view, giving us all an opportunity to learn and devise strategies to address this issue in central Ohio.”
The free community forum on December 7 is part of a public service project titled “Silent Suffering,” launched by The Columbus Dispatch with a six-day series of articles November 17-22. Citing the stigma around suicide and the lack of community conversation around this issue, the town-hall style meeting will bring experts and the public together in an all-inclusive discussion around the suicide epidemic–which is often shrouded in secrecy.
Those on the front lines of mental healthcare call suicide a public health crisis. Suicide is the fourth leading cause of death for people between the ages of 18 and 64, the second leading cause of death for people under age 24, and the tenth leading cause of death for Americans overall. In Ohio and throughout the United States, suicide accounts for more than one-third of violent deaths.
The Foundation joins the Dispatch and other sponsors of the public forum, including The Ohio State University, Ohio Suicide Prevention, and the American Society of Newspaper Editors, to better understand our community’s needs to effectively combat suicide and its devastation.
Find additional information and RSVP for the event here.
About The Columbus Foundation
The Columbus Foundation is the trusted philanthropic advisor® to 2,400 individuals, families, and businesses who have created charitable funds and planned gifts to make a difference in the lives of others through the most effective philanthropy possible. Serving the region for more than 70 years, The Columbus Foundation is the seventh largest community foundation in the United States. The Foundation’s online marketplace, PowerPhilanthropy,® makes giving mobile, easy, and smart. For more information, visit columbusfoundation.org or call 614/251-4000.