Sikeston’s Walk Bes;de Me group helps fight suicide

Kevin Hines spoke about his suicide attempt and suicide prevention to over 100 people Tuesday night at the Sikeston Field House. For one Sikeston group, suicide is an especially important topic.

Walk Bes;de Me, a group of individuals made up of mental health professionals, law enforcement, clergy, teachers, concerned parents and people have been affected by suicide was formed over three years ago.

“We had one goal — to have conversations about suicide and suicide prevention,” said Jason Davis, a member of Walk Bes;de Me.

The group was responsible for bringing Hines to Sikeston, part of their mission to help break the stigma of mental health illness and provide resources for awareness, prevention and support those in need.

The group passes out bracelets, sets up booths at events with handouts full of information, and even walk in parades holding signs about suicide and suicide prevention.

“Some of those signs have statistics that are real statistics that will take your breath away when you think about them,” Davis said.

The group was formed as the area was being hit with suicide at an alarming rate.

“It is important to see how real this problem is in our community and really in our country,” Davis said.

He added the community has been incredibly supportive and as a result, they were able to be able to bring Hines to speak to not only the community, but students and teachers as well.

“We truly believe that an event like this tonight can save lives,” Davis said. “It’s going to take all of us to see things get better.”