Stay Day: hanging on through the dark to see the light

WASILLA— Suicide is one of the most prevailing problems that affects every community across the state of Alaska. MyHouse, the homeless youth shelter nestled in downtown Wasilla near Nunley Park, dedicated a whole day toward suicide prevention at their Gathering Grounds Café on Wednesday.

“It was a full house at MyHouse!” MyHouse VP and Opioid Task Force founder Michael Carson said. “We need to continue to break the silence and bring light into the darkness. All of us can be light posts, casting a net of hope and help.”

Several individuals and groups like Fiend to Clean and the Opioid Task Force rallied together to let everyone in the Mat-Su know they are not alone and they had a safe place to seek help. MyHouse founder Michelle Overstreet said the idea was to have a whole day for the community to come together and offer a positive platform to talk about mental health without judgment and to “reduce the stigma.”

“I feel like we made in inroad,” Overstreet said.

In 2014, Alaska had the second-highest rate of suicide in the county according to the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services

The DHSS measures the suicide mortality rates and estimates an average number of people who died at their own hands, per 100,000 in each economic region (age-adjusted). In the Mat-Su, an average of 19.2 people committed suicide in 2016.

The DHSS website mentioned a national effort called the “Healthy People Objective” which aims to improve America’s overall health by 2020 and that includes reducing the national suicide rate; the U.S. Target: 10.2 suicides per 100,000 people.

“On average, one person dies of suicide every two days in Alaska,” according to data from the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

12 MyHouse clients and staff offered up their stories of “staying” in this world, sharing their personal stories of surviving suicide. A local hip-hop artist, Justin Pendergrass, used seven of them to sample audio stories into his new song, “Stay” created for this event.

“My goal when I was 10 years old was to have a song on the radio and I did that four years ago,” Pendergrass said.

A few years ago, Pendergrass penned and performed the “You are Not Alone” theme song for the Alaskan youth suicide prevention outreach program. Overstreet reached out to Pendergrass after finding his music.

He said that “Stay” was a more personal take than “You Are Not Alone” and his personal journey shines through in the lyrics.

Pendergrass said that he wants to work on the suicide prevention front as a fellow suicide survivor.

“I’ve been on my own since I was 16,” Pendergrass said.

He started writing music when he was two years old. He produces Christian rap to channel his musical interest into a platform geared to help as many Alaskans as possible.

“My focus to reach everybody, not just those who are saved,” Pendergrass said.

Suicide is a gravely dark topic in itself. Overstreet, Carson, Pendergrass, and the various other people involved with this event wanted to make it a more positive and uplifting experience with less “doom and gloom.”

“I’m going to remember this day for the rest of my life,” Pendergrass said. “We wanted to bring a positive experience: ‘Stay! You’ve got a lot to accomplish. We need ya! There’s a purpose for you.’”

“I think I could be a great asset,” Pendergrass said.

Overstreet agreed. She said that Pendergrass may not have been a MyHouse client but his story is among her proud series of successes.

“A lot of people don’t realize, once you consider suicide as an option, it’s always an option.

Pendergrass wrote “Stay” to “start a conversation that wasn’t pushy.”

“Hey there little homie, I see the pain in your eyes, I’ve seen the weight that you’ve been carrying cause I’m carrying mine, try to dig a little deeper just to help you revive, I can tell that you’ve been lying when you tell me your fine, now I remember long night during hard times, battling my heart to get my mind right, feeling like a sheep when I’m amongst liens, wondering the whole time how can I survive through this hard life,” excerpt from Pendergrass’ song “Stay.”

Pendergrass’ lyrics have found their way across the state. He said that his email inbox has been filling with messages from suicide survivors, thanking him for sharing his story and his music.

“I feel really awesome,” Pendergrass said. “If my song helped one person, I did my job right.”

Owen Bone, Christian Motorcycle Association rider attended Stay Day to lend aid throughout the event. Time has shown that the most help anyone can provide on the suicide prevention front is simply listening and offering advice as someone who’s experienced those feelings. Bone is a suicide survivor. He said that he attempted to hang himself two years ago.

Bone’s message to the community is: I’m here for you. Whatever hurts or habits you’re having, I’ve been there. I know there’s darkness and I know there’s a light.

“Took a while but I found light, took a mile at a time, got my heart right. I kept refining every struggle inside until it wasn’t just a fake smile, until it wasn’t just the outside, kept on pulling up the cliff side, And even in the eye of the storm, I kept writing and I staying cause I found what I was made for, never let my past define what kept me towing the line, I had to keep fighting,” excerpt from Pendergrass’ song “Stay.”

Bone said that if you want to talk to him, you can usually find him at the various AA and NA meetings around the Mat-Su. He also wanted to offer his personal number alongside the other help lines as a local resource. He said that anyone struggling can call him any time of the day: 907-707-7770.

Local and national resources and hotlines for suicide prevention:

· Careline Alaska 24/7 and toll-free line: 1-877-266-4357 (HELP) / www.carelinealaska.com

· SouthEast Alaska Regional Health Consortium (SEARHC) 24/7 help line 1-877-294-0074 / searhc.org

· Identity, Inc. 907-258-4777 (ANC) GLBTQ help line / 1-888-901-9876 (statewide)

· National 24/7 Suicide Prevention Hotline 1-800-273-8255 / www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org

· The Trevor Project (GLBTQ crisis hotline) 1-866-488-7386 / www.thetrevorproject.org