POCATELLO — As September and National Suicide Prevention and Awareness Month roll in, one Idaho Falls organization is encouraging people to save the date for its suicide prevention conference on Friday.

Community Suicide Prevention of Eastern Idaho will be hosting its 2022 conference “Stories of Hope Across the Lifespan” at the ballroom of Idaho State University’s Pond Student Union Building in Pocatello from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday.

The keynote speaker will be a video of Louisiana resident Emma Benoit, who has become a motivational speaker after a suicide attempt left her paralyzed at age 17 but hopeful and motivated to help others who struggle with suicidal ideation.

“The education of suicide awareness is key to the prevention of suicide,” said John Aebischer, chair of the conference planning committee and chair of Community Suicide Prevention of Eastern Idaho. “This year we have the opportunity to learn from individuals from each age range and how suicide has affected them. This will be helpful in learning ways to prevent suicide with whomever we are working with.”

Community Youth in Action with be speaking from 9 to 9:45 a.m., Benoit’s film “My Ascension” will be played from 10 to 11:30 a.m., followed by speaker Adam Rowbury from 1 to 1:45 p.m., speaker Rhonda D’Amico and a safety planning discussion from 1:45 to 3:15 p.m., and speaker Jan Burpee from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m.

Throughout the conference, attendees can learn how to increase their knowledge about suicide and undertake challenges of how to reduce it. This might include checking in on a loved one, donating to suicide prevention causes, or taking trainings that teach them about prevention methods.

One of the goals of the event is to reduce the stigma of the challenges of mental health and open up discourse that allows community members to address this widespread concern.

Last year’s conference included retired California Highway Patrol Officer Kevin Briggs, who patrolled the Golden Gate Bridge and helped dissuade hundreds of people from jumping, and later received a public service award in suicide prevention from the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention for his service.

In addition to this event, the following day Idaho State University and Community Suicide Prevention will be hosting their annual Out of Darkness Walk, which will be held at 9 a.m. Saturday on the ISU Quad.

This walk is one of many held throughout the country that raises awareness of mental health and suicide and creates a safe environment for community members to open up about their experiences. It is supported by the Idaho Chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

The conference is presented by Community Suicide Prevention in partnership with Idaho State University’s Counseling and Testing Services, Optum Idaho, Division of Public Health’s Suicide Prevention Program, and Southeastern Idaho Public Health, a press release from United Way of Southeastern Idaho said.

Interested individuals can register for the conference at bit.ly/3CobQ0O. For those interested in registering for the Out of Darkness walk, visit afsp.org/pocatello.

To learn more about Community Suicide Prevention of Eastern Idaho, visit communitysuicidepreventioneid.org, call 208-243-9411, or email communitysuicideprevention@gmail.com