Backpack display shares a lesson from loss
IMPERIAL –The hundreds of backpacks on display at Imperial Valley College’s Send Silence Packing event Thursday included two representing an IVC student and an Imperial Valley community member.
Each pack was placed throughout the grass area in front of the 2700 building with notes attached to them telling the stories of persons lost to suicide.
“Backpacks represent personal stories from individuals who are personally touched by suicide,” said Lupita Castro, director of Student Health Services at IVC. “[They are] stories of family members who have survived the loss of a loved one, or suicide attempt survivors, and stories that focus on positive actions or pursued advocacy, efforts of hope, and recovery.”
“Now, after the pandemic people who seek help think there’s no one out there to advocate for them. I understand it is hard to open up and ask for help,” said Daniel Lopez, an Imperial Valley College (IVC) student and an employee of the Upward Bound program. “This (Send Silence Packing) is bringing awareness to those who may be in need of help.”
The exhibit was brought to the campus by the IVC Student Health Center in partnership with Active Minds the organization founded by Alison Malmon in 2003 after her older brother, Brian, committed suicide in 2000.
“I have been looking into this event for a few years, they have a busy calendar traveling across the USA,” said Lupita Castro, director of Student Health Services at IVC, “but this semester I realized they were traveling across California, and I thought we couldn’t let go of this opportunity in efforts to support our students mental health needs that increased with this pandemic.”
Health equity promoters Let’s Get Healthy California report that California’s suicide rate in 2010 was 10 persons per 100,000 population. That figure spiked during the pandemic to hit 13.4 suicides per 100,000 in 2021. The rate has been tapering off and currently sits at 10.7 for 2022.
“We want to inspire action to end the silence and reach out for help,” Castro said. “It is OK to not feel OK.”
Send Silence Packing is an effort to advocate for mental health and connect those in need with the appropriate services. Active Minds reaches out to different organizations to host their events.
“We bring out our silence packing across the country to bring awareness to suicide,” said Stevie Provis, Active Minds display coordinator. “Each tour is about a college semester long, after students return from summer or winter break, we begin.”
Given the sensitivity of the exhibit’s subject matter, IVC informed students and designated alternative routes for those who preferred not to pass through the display.