SUNY Potsdam to Host Suicide Awareness Walk for Campus and Community

College Counseling Center Sponsors 2016 Suicide Awareness Walk on Sept. 17

POTSDAM, NY (09/07/2016)(readMedia)-- SUNY Potsdam will host its fifth annual Suicide Awareness Walk on Saturday, Sept. 17, starting outside Thatcher Hall. Registration will open at 10:30 a.m., and the walk will begin promptly at noon.

The campus walk is sponsored by the College Counseling Center and the Jeffery Kimball Foundation for Suicide Prevention and Awareness. The Suicide Awareness Walk was created in partnership with the Kimball family, who lost their son Jeff to suicide in 2007, while he was a student at SUNY Potsdam.

The walk will raise funds to support the foundation's work at SUNY Potsdam and in the surrounding communities to save lives through prevention and awareness.

Registration will begin at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 17, outside of Thatcher Hall. The rain location is in the Barrington Student Union. Free parking is available in Lots 11 and 12.

Guests are welcome to register the day of the event. There is no fee to participate in the walk, but donations are welcome.

Suicide Awareness Walk T-shirts are available for sale in the College Store, and will also be available on the day of the walk for $10 each.

The Suicide Awareness Walk will begin at noon, and take a one- to two-mile loop around campus. Along the way, there will be signs marking the path with important facts about suicide. Student groups and Counseling Center staff will guide the walk and help to ensure safety.

Following the walk, there will be a short ceremony featuring meaningful music from a SUNY Potsdam a cappella group, as well as light refreshments. Students and community members will be invited to speak or give readings.

For more information, visit www.potsdam.edu/studentlife/counseling/suicideawareness.

If you have any questions about the Suicide Awareness Walk, please contact the SUNY Potsdam Counseling Center at (315) 267-2330.

The SUNY Potsdam Counseling Center provides brief solution-based psychological services to students experiencing emotional or situational difficulties. Information shared in counseling is treated with the strictest confidence. To learn more, visit www.potsdam.edu/studentlife/counseling.

Founded in 1816, The State University of New York at Potsdam is one of America's first 50 colleges -- and the oldest institution within SUNY. As the College marks its bicentennial in 2016, SUNY Potsdam will celebrate a 200-year legacy of pioneering programs and educational excellence. The College currently enrolls approximately 4,100 undergraduate and graduate students. Home to the world-renowned Crane School of Music, SUNY Potsdam is known for its challenging liberal arts and sciences core, distinction in teacher training and leadership in the arts. Empowered by a culture of creativity, the campus community is nearing the completion of Take the Lead: The Campaign for Potsdam, which has raised $33.5 million for scholarships and programs.

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