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Chatham’s Third Annual “Out of the Darkness” Community Walk Rings Up $60,000 for Suicide Prevention
“While we had a great walk today the work isn’t over, we must continue to talk and shine a bright light on suicide prevention. The more we talk about it, the more we can make a difference.” – Chatham Township Mayor Curt Ritter.
The walk raised $60,000 for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and gave friends and family a chance to remember their loved ones lost by suicide.
Tap into Chatham, Sept. 23, 2018
Photos by Eric Swenson Photography
A Message to the Tommy Fuss Team 2018
Thank you for participating in the Tommy Fuss Team’s twelfth Out of the Darkness Overnight Walk. I hope it was a meaningful night for each and every one of you. I am proud to have been a part of this extraordinary event again this year.
Together – as walkers and crew members – we were successful in raising awareness, supporting survivors and raising money for the important work of the AFSP. The Tommy Fuss Team has proudly raised over $47,000.00 this year which will help the AFSP pursue the research and programming that will produce the interventions necessary to reduce our nation’s suicide rate 20% by 2025. Thank you for all your fundraising efforts and your own personal donations.
Thank you for remembering Tommy in this special way – you are truly a wonderful Team. I hope you found strength and comfort knowing that what we are doing will help those who are suffering from a disease we know so little about and will help to save precious lives. Your continued love, dedication and support to our family are forever appreciated.
Thank you to our walkers who walked over 16 miles through historic Philadelphia. I hope your journey gave you peace and a sense of accomplishment as you walked for a common cause – to honor all those we have lost to suicide, and to support those whose fight continues.
Thank you to our Crew Team who worked into the early morning hours providing nutrition, hydration, encouragement and support to over 1,200 walkers at “Midnight Snack.”
Thank you to Joe for all the behind the scenes artwork, website design and updates, and his famous instructions to “scooch” together for our annual team picture.
And above all, thank you to RoseMary and Dan for hosting us in Philadelphia and being the Team’s backbone and support. Their courage, strength, and love are truly the ”wind beneath our wings” as we journey together – one step at a time – to bring issues of mental health and suicide Out of the Darkness,
With sincerest regards and thanks,
Valerie Olpp
Click on any image to start slide show.
We are Tommy’s family and friends – many of us were blessed with 17 years of his love and friendship, others have come to know Tommy through his legacy of friendship and our recognition of the urgency and importance of taking mental illness seriously. We are working together
- To raise awareness
- To remove the stigmas
- To further the understanding of these diseases
- To prevent the tragic loss of lives cut short by suicide
We work together – with family, friends, neighbors, coworkers, colleagues and others in our community to encourage individuals to seek help for themselves or those they love and to keep our young people safe.
Check out our News page here! On this page we’ll be posting links to articles and information that will help our visitors gain a fuller perspective on the issues most important to us.