Every year it is estimated that in excess of 100,000 people in the United States end their lives by suicide. These people are not just statistical numbers, They are husbands, wives, mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, children, friends, and/or classmates.

Answering the Cry for Help will help to bridge the gap between schools and communities by providing guidelines for developing a Community Suicide Prevention Program that:

• promotes awareness about risks,
• discusses methods for suicide prevention,
• establishes guidelines and resources for intervention,
• seeks to educate and train Crisis Team members and community leaders to manage possible situations and scenarios.

This resource manual provides ideas for dealing with funding issues, guidelines for media relations, an outline for beginning a proactive preventative outreach program, and websites that will prove to be invaluable as you create your own Community-based Suicide Prevention program.