Twitter
Facebook
As Sgt. Darius Taitt sipped his coffee at Java Cafe, he noticed the suicide prevention hotline printed on the cardboard coffee sleeve.
Sergeant Taitt, an orthopedic technician at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, thought of how his friend — a fellow Soldier — attempted suicide, but fortunately did not succeed.
Coffee cup sleeves, one of several ongoing U.S. Army Garrison Kaiserslautern initiatives to raise awareness in the community during Army Suicide Prevention Month, served as a good reminder, Sergeant Taitt said.
“We’re losing lives all the time — needlessly. In the Army, we need to take care of each other,” Sergeant Taitt said. “My friend found a lot of help; people were there for him.”
Several events were held recently to inform people in the community, including Soldiers passing out information and candy at entrance gates, information booths at dining facilities and a video contest for the best public service announcement, said Lisa Velez, coordinator of the prevention campaign.
Across posts in Kaiserslautern, volunteers from the Better Opportunities for Single Soldiers program placed 1,800 door hangers throughout the barracks — reminders on where to seek help. During the third week of September, hundreds of coffee sleeves were used at post cafes in Kaiserslautern, Mannheim and Heidelberg.
Suicide awareness is not just a September issue, Ms. Velez said. It’s an ongoing effort to put out information, hopefully to reach someone at risk or those around them.
“One piece of information put in the right hands is a success,” she said.
Soldiers sometimes wrongly view depression as a weakness and don’t seek help, said Staff Sgt. Charles Bailey, a medic at LRMC.
“That’s why this campaign is so important,” Sergeant Bailey said. “Soldiers need to know that people have problems and its OK to talk about that. There’s no shame, you’re not weak and no one is going to think less of you.”
