Time to talk openly about suicide, mental health, event organizers say
When Davin Stachoski’s brother died by suicide 23 years ago, there was very little public discussion about mental illness.
“It was a difficult thing to talk about at the time, and I think nobody really knew how to address it, and there was still such a stigma around mental health and suicide,” said Stachoski.
“Because people don’t know how to talk about it, it almost becomes like you lose memories of your loved ones because you’re not able to properly grieve or share stories or talk about it, because it’s an uncomfortable topic.”
Watching the stigma around mental illness and suicide slowly decrease over the last two decades has been “comforting,” said Stachoski, but he believes there is still a lot of improvement needed.
To continue this shift, Stachoski is helping organize Huddle Up for Suicide Prevention, an event that aims to bolster awareness of suicide and encourage people to talk openly about mental health.
Huddle Up for Suicide Prevention began in Calgary in 2016, when Clym Atkin and Jill Viccars teamed up with the Calgary Stampeders and decided to take action after their brother-in-law died by suicide. The annual event expanded to Edmonton, and will now be held in Regina for the first time on Saturday.
Stachoski said the goal is to eventually host Huddle Up for Suicide Prevention annually in every CFL city across Canada.
“I know it’s a heavy topic, but we want this to be a fun event,” he said. “A lot of people that are going to attend, their lives have been touched by suicide … but a lot of them are just people who believe in the cause.”
While he wants people to feel free to share their experiences at the event, Stachoski said there is no pressure to do so, as he also recognizes that not everyone will be ready or willing to talk about suicide.
Fellow Regina organizer Stephanie Streifel lost her brother-inlaw to suicide in May. She hopes raising awareness of suicide and opening up conversation will help those affected realize they are not alone.
“We feel guilty, and that guilt turns into shame. It really goes back to the question, ‘What could we have done differently?’ ” said Streifel.
“It’s amazing how you start talking about it and next thing you know, everyone has a story about a friend or a family member that they’ve lost … It seems like everybody is affected by this topic, but nobody opens up and talks about it.”
Early tickets to the event included a ticket to the Saskatchewan Roughriders game against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on Saturday and entry to Decades of Music — a post-game party featuring music from the 1960s through ’90s — at The Exchange. These are no longer for sale, but tickets for just the Decades of Music party are still available online or at the door for $20.
The Decades of Music party will feature local musicians Mackenzie Jackson, Vintage Children and The Bystanders playing covers from the ’60s, ’70s and ’90s respectively. DJ E Majors will be playing music from the ’80s.
Doors open at The Exchange at 8 p.m. on Saturday, with music to start at 8:30 p.m.
All proceeds will go toward the Canadian Mental Health Association Saskatchewan Division’s Friends for Life program, which provides workshops on mental health and suicide prevention.