Chrissy Tomasco and the 2014 Overnight Walk

By: Chris Greacen - 05/06/2014
My cousin Chrissy Tomasco is participating the 2014 Overnight Walk in Philadelphia to raising awareness about suicide and raise funds for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. Take moment to support her efforts by making a small donation here.

She says:

Please support me as I take an amazing journey. The Out of the Darkness Overnight Experience is an 16-18 mile walk over the course of one night. Net proceeds benefit the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, funding research, advocacy, survivor support, education, and awareness programs both to prevent suicide and to assist those affected by suicide.

In 2001 I lost my mother to suicide. Being a 13 year old at the time, I had a very hard time moving on from that day. One of the biggest struggles I faced and still face, is feeling comfortable enough to tell people how I lost my mother. I have been carrying this weight around with me and I very rarely tell people how my mother passed away. There has always been a serious taboo associated with suicide. It makes people uncomfortable. To avoid the conversation that always follows upon someone finding out I do not have a mother, I have often made up other reasons for her death. I catch myself telling people "she was sick" to halt any further questions. In retrospect, she was sick. She was sick for a very long time. She spent her whole adult life battling mental illness and addiction.

My mother was embarrassed by her illnesses and felt alienated by those around her. She made a choice that day because she felt hopeless and abandoned. She was wrong. She had more love and support than most. She was unable to think rationally and she made an irrational, life-altering decision that rocked the lives of many people.

July 17th 2001 was the day that Barbara died. I carry that moment with me everyday and everywhere. I still break down. If anything, it only gets harder. I would like to gain my voice back. I want to feel comfortable to say I am a victim of suicide, and I am surviving. For every person I feel comfortable to expose my true experiences with, the taboo surrounding suicide is chiseled away little by little. It is time to talk about mental illness and suicide. We all know someone who has been affected by this. Lets talk about things that make us uncomfortable, it is time to get it out there and to spread the word that hope and support are always around us. We are never alone, even in the darkest of times.

Donate Here.