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Suicide walk keeps friend's spirit alive
(by Sue Hoffman - October 21, 2009)
Suicide walk keeps friend's spirit alive
By SUE HOFFMAN
Katie Klespies, a sophomore at Chagrin Falls High School, always will remember her friend Darcy Hamlin's smile. The two had been close friends and neighbors during the four years that Katie had lived in Hudson.
"When we moved from Cuyahoga Falls to Hudson, she was one of the first people I met," said Katie, whose family moved to South Russell over a year ago.
"The last time I saw her was the summer before ninth grade," Katie said. The year after she moved, Katie said she learned that Darcy was suffering from depression.
"It was hard for me to see the changes," Katie said. "I wished I could have helped more, but there was nothing I could do from this far away. Neither one of us drove yet.
"Darcy was depressed. She had lost her self-confidence, and couldn't take it anymore."
Katie had a sleepover planned at Darcy's house in the middle of last May. The weekend prior to that, she visited another friend in Hudson. "That was ironic," she said.
On May 12, Katie was at school, when friends from Hudson desperately tried to call her. "Friends were bombarding my phone with calls and text messages. I received a text that Darcy had died." The Hudson students had heard about it in an announcement at the high school, she said.
"I fell to the ground," Katie said. She wanted to go home, but had a track meet. "I hung out at the guidance office all day." She attended the funeral, but she wanted to do much more for Darcy, who had tragically ended her own life May 11.
"My friends told me about the walk coming up for the Suicide Prevention Education Alliance," she said. "I saw you could make teams and got my friends from Hudson and Chagrin Falls involved. Darcy's sister, brother, parents and extended family also joined the team, and my mom helped a lot by getting people from work to join us."
Team Darcy's Smile, comprised of 55 members from both the Hudson and Chagrin Falls areas, remembered Darcy at the suicide prevention "Into the Light" walk, held Sept. 27 at the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo. The team also won a trophy for raising the third highest amount of funds for the walk. Money raised supports SPEA's suicide prevention program, which is provided free to 79 schools in the Cleveland area, including local districts.
"My goal was $1,000," Katie said, "and we raised $2,863." She said she was also pleased with the number of members in her team. "My goal for that was only 12. It was nice to see how many people supported Darcy.
"I want to say how thankful I am to have my friends, administrators, family and especially my mother's support, because there is no way I could have done this without them," Katie said.
Besides the contribution by Darcy's Smile, the Chagrin Falls High School Key Club raised $1,735 and Team Group from the Federated Church raised $940 for a total of $5,538 from Chagrin Falls.
At the time of the walk, Chagrin Falls High School came in third among school teams, with $1,060 raised. University School in Hunting Valley won the first-place school trophy with $2,104 and Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin School in Munson won second place with $1,675.
Orange, Solon and West Geauga high schools also participated.
In total, 77 teams were present at the walk, raising more than $85,000. Contributions continue to come in, said Pat Lyden, SPEA executive director and a Chagrin Falls resident. Walk attendance totaled 1,250, an increase of 30 percent from the previous year.
For more information about SPEA programs or to contribute, call (216) 464-3471.
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