Will County Gazette

Village of New Lenox Safe Community Coalition met May 10.

Here is the agenda provided by the community:

Suicide Prevention and Awareness Task Group Meeting

1. Call to Order / Attendance

2. Approval of Minutes from March 15, 2022 Task Group Meeting

3. Old Business

a. “Mental Health First Aid” (MHFA) was held on Wednesday, April 13, 2022 from 8:30am to 4:30pm in the Community Room at the New Lenox Village Hall. A working lunch was provided to all attendees and instructors. 30 citizens registered for this class via Eventbrite. To date, 342 citizens have completed MHFA due to the partnership that we have with Sertoma Centre, Inc.

b. “safeTALK” will be held on Thursday, May 12, 2022 from 9:00am to 1:00pm in the Community Room at the New Lenox Village Hall. A working lunch will be included for all attendees and instructors. Currently, 28 citizens are registered for this class. This is the second time that Sertoma Centre, Inc. is teaching this class in New Lenox.

c. “Believe You Can 5K Run / Walk” (for Mental Health & Wellness) Saturday, May 21, 2022, 9:00am @ New Lenox Commons – Update.

d. “A Pathway to Hope and Healing”

i. “A Pathway to Hope and Healing” is tentatively scheduled for Wednesday, September 21, 2022 at Lincoln-Way West High School. The planning team is proposing two breakout sessions that will be held from 4:00pm to 5:00pm. Then, there will be a keynote speaker from 5:00pm to 6:00pm. Then, there will be a break from 6:00pm to 6:30pm to allow time for food, raffles, and informational table visits. Lastly, the two breakout sessions will be repeated from 6:30pm to 7:30pm.

ii. Linda Pacha will provide a breakout session entitled “Learning to Live with Loss,” which will be done at 4:00pm and then again at 6:30pm. Learning objectives include:

• Get a more practical understanding of grief stages and learn how skills obtained from past abrupt life changes can be used to work through grief.

• Identify choices after loss and reasons to keep pushing on.

• Understand the importance of forgiveness for healing and how to train your brain to stay positive.

• Gain tips for navigating grief and helping someone who is grieving.

iii. Gia Washington will provide “Question, Persuade and Refer” training as a breakout session at 4:00pm and 6:30pm.

iv. Linda Pacha will provide a keynote presentation entitled “Suicide Prevention: Hindsight, Warning Signs, and Hope,” at 5:00pm. Discussion points include:

• Linda will talk about her son’s story, share missed warning signs, and discuss the importance of kindness and compassion.

• Learn the risk factors and warning signs for suicide, including real-life examples.

• Obtain tips for helping someone who is struggling.

e. Steering Committee Update (May 4, 2022 Meeting)

i. Collaborative Partner Organizations – Programs Survey

• Created in part, to fulfill Goal #4 from our 2022 Strategic Plan.

• We are discovering that some of our organizations have programs, classes, workshops, and other offerings that our Safe Community Coalition could host / sponsor.

• Review of – “letter” to organizations, sample survey, and blank survey.

ii. Collaborative Partner Organizations – Engagement

• 70 “Participating” Organizations and 103 Coalition Members

• Review of Coalition and Task Group Roster

• Engagement and Attendance – Task Group Meetings, Coalition Meetings, and Events

iii. New Lenox Safe Community Coalition By-Laws

• Approved at the March 30, 2022 Coalition Meeting

iv. 2022 Strategic Plan

• Working on goals

v. 2022 Annual Report

• Working on collection of information

vi. Action Plans

• Task Groups (some, not all) are offering to complete

vii.NLSCC Quarterly Newsletters

• Next issue – July, 2022

4. New Business

a. The next “Question, Persuade and Refer” (QPR) will be during “A Pathway to Hope and Healing” tentatively scheduled for Wednesday, September 21, 2022 at Lincoln-Way West High School.

b. Illinois Suicide Prevention Alliance

i. The next meeting will be held on Wednesday, May 18, 2022 from 10:00am to 1:00pm via WebEx. Contact Dan Martin if you wish to attend and he will provide the login information.

c. New web pages for the DPH Suicide Prevention web page https://dph.illinois.gov/topics services/prevention-wellness/suicide-prevention.html

i. A Youth, Adolescent, and Young Adult Suicide Prevention subpage was created to serve as a landing page for content created by the ISPA Adolescent Suicide Prevention Ad Hoc Committee. The webpage includes a description of youth suicide, who is at risk, risk/protective factors, and warning signs. https://dph.illinois.gov/topics services/prevention-wellness/suicide-prevention/youth-suicide-prevention.html

ii. How You Can Help Prevent Youth Suicide – a sub webpage with an overview of steps each of the following roles can take in suicide prevention: high schools, high school teachers, high school mental health providers, foster care providers, colleges and universities, and parents. https://dph.illinois.gov/topics-services/prevention wellness/suicide-prevention/youth-suicide-prevention/how-you-can-help.html 

iii. Guidelines on Youth Suicide Awareness and Prevention – a sub webpage to highlight suicide prevention-related documents to schools and others working with children, adolescents, and young adults. https://dph.illinois.gov/topics-services/prevention wellness/suicide-prevention/youth-suicide-prevention/guidelines-on-youth-suicide awareness-and-prevention.html

5. Good of the Order / Organization Updates

6. Next Meeting: Tuesday, July 12, 2022 / 1:30pm via Zoom videoconference.

7. Adjournment

Suicide Prevention and Awareness Task Group

“To reduce deaths and injuries related to suicide, through the development of educational programs, initiatives and strategies that address factors which lead to the attempt or completion of suicide.”

https://www.newlenox.net/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_05102025-457