Suicide Prevention Month Event

Thank you, Walt Dannenberg, for that kind introduction. Mayor Phillip Jones is here today. It’s so fitting to have a Marine leading Newport News, a city with such a long maritime history, and where so many Veterans choose to call home. As always, Marines lead the way. And Hampton Mayor Donnie Tuck is also joining us—a key partner to our team here at the Hampton VA.

Now, gatherings like these are the result of so many people working hard behind the scenes. So let me give a shoutout to some of today’s organizers: Janelle Amezcua, Sara McGuinness, Lila Elliott, Megan Flaherty, Raymond Wells, Chanda Marcus, Shaconda Griffin, and Christina Beckett. And our local suicide prevention leadership is here, too. My deepest appreciation goes out to Dr. Kathy Babel, Chief of Psychology, and Dr. Maninder Singh, Chief of Mental Health. Your support and guidance to this team are unmatched.

Chaplain Vinson Miller, your invocation was precisely what the soul needs. You serve many roles as a VA chaplain, including as a key member of our postvention team. Chaplains and faith leaders like you are invaluable to everything we do here at VA, offering wisdom and spiritual support to providers, Veterans, and their families.

Finally, thanks to all our community partners for being here today for this important event. Most importantly, thank you for your partnership and leadership in helping prevent Veteran suicide. Because there is nothing more important than working together to save Veterans’ lives.

Today is about hope. Hope for Veterans and their loved ones in our neighborhoods, our places of worship, at work, at home, and here in this room. Life will have its challenges. But there is always hope. Your being here today is a testament to that. Your presence matters in this sacred mission of suicide prevention. There is hope. Treatment works. Healing happens. Each of you makes a difference. Because no one cares more than you. No one is more dedicated than you. Your work saves lives. And it will save more lives.

I’ll start with a story about a Veteran—Matt Campbell. Matt grew up in a small town in Northwest Indiana. He decided to join the Navy shortly after the September 11^th terrorist attacks. He became a Corpsman. Like many of you in this room, he served because he wanted to save lives. Matt was attached to a Marine Unit—2^nd Battalion, 7^th Marines … also known as Two-Seven—out of Twentynine Palms, California.

In those early days of the Global War on Terror, Matt and his unit were called on to do multiple tours overseas, including back-to-back tours. Two-Seven was one of the hardest hit units in Afghanistan. Matt’s team endured attacks and close engagements on a nearly daily basis. During his second deployment, Two-Seven sustained more casualties than any other team.

Matt’s transition back stateside was hard, compounded by the fact that he transitioned out of the Navy just weeks after returning home from war. Imagine that. On a battlefield one day, back home, a civilian, the next. Matt struggled. His mental health suffered, and he found himself in a dark place. For six years Matt didn’t seek help. But he decided to go back to school to keep studying health care, using his post-9/11 GI Bill and Voc-Rehab.

One fateful day, at an especially low point, Matt’s Voc-Rehab counselor asked him to come to VA for help. Matt’s a man of faith and a worship leader at his local church. He keeps a placard on his desk quoting Luke 11:9. Luke says, “So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.” Matt prayed and decided to finally knock on VA’s door. And it opened. Matt says he knew he found his purpose the moment he walked through the door of his local VA. He found his home. Today, Matt’s been with VA for over a decade as a patient, and as one of our dedicated VA teammates. He works in the Veterans Experience Office, doing the important work of reaching out to Veterans and community-based organizations.

Matt’s story doesn’t end there, but let me stop for a second. We need to reach Vets like Matt and bring them into our care, because Vets in VA care do better. And that’s where you can really make a difference. It’s one thing for a Veteran to hear about VA services from me. It’s an entirely different thing for them to hear about VA services from you. Just like Matt’s Voc-Rehab counselor did for him. Because you are the people in Veterans’ lives and communities here in Hampton Roads. You work with them, spend time with them, and break bread with them. You are the people they know and love. You are the people they trust.

So, a recommendation from you can go a long way toward convincing a skeptical Veteran to give VA a try. Doing that can change their life. I’ll come back to this later. But please, check in with the Veterans in your life who may be going through a rough time. Visit VA.gov/REACH for resources, today. Everyone can be part of the solution and help save Veterans’ lives. Every interaction a Vet has with friends, family, strangers, or loved ones has the potential to save a life.

Let me continue. You remember Matt’s unit, Two-Seven? Well, they go by another name. They call themselves “The Forgotten Battalion,” abandoned in combat and abandoned again when they came home. In the years since returning from war in 2008, 38 Marines in Two-Seven have died by suicide. Many more continue to suffer. Marines—The Few, The Proud—are trained to put a mission and others before themselves. That can sometimes make it hard for them to accept or ask for help. But Marines have a special relationship with the Navy Docs in their unit. Those Docs earn the Fleet Marine Force designation, wear the iconic Marine Corps uniforms, and even earn the right to call themselves Marines—the ultimate sign of respect in that hallowed and eternal band of warriors.

Docs like Matt are often the difference between life and death on the battlefield. Many of the Marines Matt served with didn’t trust VA. But they trusted their old Doc. They trusted Matt. Matt treated their combat wounds overseas, and Matt continues to care for their invisible scars of moral injury here at home. Matt listens, no matter the time of night or day. And his Marines open up. He brings other Marines from their unit into the call, and they all talk together through their struggles, forever united by the bonds of shared experiences. They reinforce the power of asking for help, getting treatment, and giving VA a chance. One Veteran life lost to suicide is one too many. The Marines of Two-Seven have lost far too many of their brothers- and sisters-in-arms. But countless lives have been saved, too. Through all the hardships Matt and his Marines have experienced over the years, what shines through are moments of inspiration and hope, strength and resilience, caring and kindness. Because of Matt and so many of you in this room, there are Veterans at home with their families right now. Mindful as we are of the Vets who are not. Matt’s story shows the impact VA and our partners are having in communities and neighborhoods around the country. Serving Veterans. Saving lives. It is a testament to the amazing colleagues and partners I am blessed to work with at VA. I have the privilege of seeing your inspiring work every single day.

Now it is a natural response to ask “why?” following a devastating loss from suicide. Retracing last moments, reviewing prior conversations, replaying each interaction, each stressor. What makes Veteran suicide, and suicide in general, particularly challenging is this fact: there is no one cause of suicide. Perhaps it’s legal problems or incarceration, a new cancer diagnosis or the death of a child, the pandemic, a strained relationship, chronic pain, substance abuse, homelessness, financial problems, job transitions, trauma, and so much more. It’s not always one thing, one problem, or one challenge in life. Yet for each Veteran, their own thoughts of suicide are driven by their own unique challenges. No Veteran’s experience is the same. But there is hope. Perhaps that’s what drove you to be here today. Hope. There is hope in realizing that we are not alone in this mission to end Veteran suicide. There is hope in being here together. There is hope in reaching out, asking for help, and bringing the Veterans we serve into contact with a real person. There is hope in linking them up with someone who is ready and willing to help them contend with any crisis.

So let me quickly tell you about six of VA’s Veteran-centric, innovative solutions that give me hope, inspiring work designed to save lives and get Veterans the world-class care they need, wherever and whenever they need it.

First, we are offering free emergency suicide prevention care, at all VA and non-VA facilities, regardless of VA enrollment status. Over 74,000 Vets in crisis have received care through this new policy.

Second, Staff Sergeant Parker Gordon Fox Suicide Prevention Grants are getting resources to local suicide prevention services where Veterans are, funding local innovations among people who know their Veterans best. Last week we announced $52.5 million in Fox Grants, including 85 organizations across the country. One of those grants is going to a non-profit group right here in Hampton, the Western Tidewater Community Services Board. They provide outreach, education, and support for suicide prevention across the state, uniquely designed and tailored for Veterans and their families.

Third, we are working with more than 2,000 local community coalitions engaged in ending Veteran suicide. These coalitions—faith-based and community groups, health technology companies, universities, Veteran Service Organizations, and others—now reach more than 7.5 million Veterans. These trusted partners, like so many of you in this room, work with Veterans in their neighborhoods, in their communities, around the country. Because Veterans need and deserve suicide prevention solutions that meet them where they are, rather than expecting them to come to us.

Fourth, we connected Veterans directly to the Veterans Crisis line through 988 Press 1, the national suicide prevention lifeline. Over the past two years, the hotline has fielded over two million calls, texts, and messages—with an average time to answer of just under 10 seconds. And every second counts in a time of crisis, so Veterans are getting the help they need when they need it most.

Fifth, we are conducting outreach to Veterans in need. This year, VA launched a new ad campaign called, “The Bravest Thing,” showing how seeking help is an act of bravery. This is especially true in the eyes of loved ones. We must normalize the act of seeking help before the thought, the boiling point, or the crisis. So I’ll say it again. Please, check in with the Veterans in your life who may be going through a rough time, and encourage them to reach out if they need help. Visit VA.gov/REACH for resources, today.

Sixth, and finally, we are promoting secure firearm storage. The majority of Veterans who die by suicide die by firearm. Meanwhile, research shows that the time between suicidal ideation—thinking about taking one’s life and the action is remarkably short. The thought, plan, and attempt of suicide can occur in 60 minutes or less, nearly 75% of the time. Nearly one-quarter of suicides occur within the first five minutes. Now, if the attempt is paired with a highly lethal means such as a firearm, it results in death 90% of the time. Every minute—every second—matters for a Veteran in crisis. So let’s normalize the discussion.  It’s okay to ask if someone is having thoughts about suicide. And it is okay to ask how they are storing their firearms, too. Our local VA facilities provide free gun locks with the Veterans Crisis Line number on it. A gun safe holding or displaying objects that hold personal meaning, like pictures of loved ones or personal notes, can serve as reminders of hope during times of crisis. Maybe it’s temporarily storing a firearm outside of the home when signs of depression are increasing. Storing your firearm in a locked location and with the ammunition stored separately can allow time and space for reflection. Doing so can save lives.

I’ll end where I started. Suicide is preventable. But it takes all of us, all of our collective heart and will alongside the very best evidence-based solutions, to save Veterans’ lives. If you take one step, no matter how small, you can have an immense impact on the lives of Veterans. And with all this work, and more, saving lives is exactly what we’re going to do together. That gives me hope. Not just in September during Suicide Prevention Month. It gives me hope every single day. I pray it gives you and the Veterans we serve hope, too. I look forward to continuing this important work, together. God bless you all. And God bless our Veterans, their families, caregivers, and survivors.