Conference focuses on Suicide Prevention in the African American faith communities

NASHVILLE – The Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (TDMHSAS) is co-sponsoring the 2013 Suicide Prevention and the African American Faith Communities Conference on Saturday, April 20, in Murfreesboro, Tenn. The Conference, with the theme of “Breaking the Silence,” is free to the general public and members of all faith communities, who will learn how to develop suicide prevention strategies.

“This conference is intended to equip both leaders and regular members of these groups with the tools they need to prevent suicide and how to help those left behind when a suicide does occur,” says Scott Ridgway, MS, Executive Director of the Tennessee Suicide Prevention Network (TSPN), another co-sponsor of the Conference, in a letter that will be distributed at the Conference.

The Rutherford County Suicide Prevention Coalition, a county task force of the TSPN that works to raise awareness of suicide prevention and mental health issues within the Rutherford County area, helped organize the event.

To register for the Conference, which takes place from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Patterson Park Community Center, 521 Mercury Blvd., send an e-mail to Kim Rush at The Guidance Center at krush@vbhcs.org, putting “Breaking the Silence” in the subject line. People can also register at the Conference on Saturday. For general information about the event, call (615) 898-0771 or 542-2364.