MetroWest Suicide, Mental Health Walk Coming To Natick This Fall

Natick MA

09 August, 2021

12:51 PM

Description

NATICK, MA — A regional walk to raise awareness about suicide and mental health is coming to Natick this autumn, according to organizers. The 2021 MetroWest Out of the Darkness Community Walk will take place at the Natick Common. The organizers will also offer an alternative date for a virtual walk so participants can observe safe distancing guidelines. The Natick event will raise money for suicide prevention research — the 2021 goal is $25,000, and about $8,000 had already been pledged as of Monday. But it will also serve as a place for people to meet and discuss mental health issues, and to remember people who have died by suicide. "The Community Walks, held in hundreds of cities across the country, are the core of the Out of the Darkness movement, which began in 2004," the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) describes. "These events give people the courage to open up about their own connections to the cause, and a platform to create a culture that's smarter about mental health. Friends, family members, neighbors and coworkers walk side-by-side, supporting each other and in memory of those we've lost." The 2021 walk is set to happen on Oct. 17, although organizers are monitoring public health conditions due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Individual or teams who want to join either the in-person walk or the virtual event in November should visit the AFSP website.