Date/Time
Date(s) - 10/21/2017
8:30 am
Location
Willows Professional Park
I volunteered for the Samaritans while I was a student at Merrimack College. I often went around to high schools to discuss suicide prevention, but the bulk of my job was to answer the hotline and talk people through their experience. It taught me the power of hope. Making someone feel heard, and giving them hope for the future, can truly change or save a life.
The Samaritans of Merrimack Valley (a program of Family Services of Merrimack Valley) is hosting their first annual “Walk for Hope” on Saturday, October 21, 2017. Registration is now open for walkers of all levels at www.samaritanswalkforhope.racewire.com.
The Walk for Hope begins with registration at 8:30 at the Willows Professional Park in North Andover and will feature Irish music performed by Tewksbury’s own Mossie Coughlin. Walk participants will have the opportunity to honor a loved one by sponsoring a personalized memorial ribbon to be cut at the start of the walk’s 1.5 mile route. Family Services and the Samaritans of Merrimack Valley are thrilled to welcome to the event the voice of a longtime supporter, Senator Barbara L’Italien, who will offer some remarks as the walkers warm up and prepare to head out on the course. “I volunteered for the Samaritans while I was a student at Merrimack College. I often went around to high schools to discuss suicide prevention, but the bulk of my job was to answer the hotline and talk people through their experiences,” recalled the Senator as she reflected back on her personal connection to the Samaritans. “It taught me the power of hope. Making someone feel heard, and giving them hope for the future, can truly change or save a life.”
