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September 2, 2014LIVINGASHEVILLE CITIZEN-TIMES • CITIZEN-TIMES.com Features Editor Bruce Steele, 232-5848 or bsteele@CITIZEN-TIMES.com

S uicide takes an enormoustoll on families, friendsand entire communities.

Sadly, every 14 minutes some-one dies by sui-cide. We need toknow more aboutsuicide and waysto prevent it, andwe need to helpthose left behind,the survivors ofsuicide loss.

Some of themost frequentlycited risk factors

for suicide are mental dis-orders, in particular depres-sion or bipolar disorder, alco-hol or substance abuse, schizo-phrenia, personality and anxi-

ety disorders.Most of the time, people

who kill themselves show oneor more of these warning signsbefore they take action. Warn-ing signs may include:

» Talking about wanting tokill themselves.

» Looking for a way to killthemselves or talking about aspecific suicide plan.

» Feeling hopeless, trapped,humiliated or desperate.

» Acting irritable, agitatedor showing rage.

If someone you know showsthe warning signs above, thetime to act is now. Fifty to 75percent of all people who at-tempt suicide tell someoneabout their intention. Take it

seriously. Privacy is very im-portant, but your loved one’slife is even more important.This is a crisis requiring im-mediate attention.

Depending on the urgencyof the situation, the followingactions should be considered:

» Do not leave the personalone.

» Remove any firearms,drugs or sharp objects thatcould be used for suicide fromthe area.

» Take the person to a hospi-tal emergency room or urgentcare center.

» Call 911 or the NationalSuicide Prevention Lifeline at1-800-273-TALK.

Suicide survivors can re-

ceive assistance form Care-Partners Bereavement Depart-ment at 277-4800.

The American Foundationfor Suicide Prevention is theleading national not-for-profitorganization exclusively ded-icated to understanding andpreventing suicide throughresearch, education and ad-vocacy. During the last fiveyears, the foundation hasgranted more than $14 millionto 100 studies investigating thecauses, treatment and preven-tion of suicide.

Thousands of people nation-wide walk in the foundation’sOut of the Darkness Communi-ty Walks to benefit the Amer-ican Foundation for Suicide

Prevention. The Ashevilleevent is Sept. 6 (see box).

I will be walking in memoryof my son and to prevent an-other family from goingthrough the immense pain ourfamily felt after we lost Pat-rick to suicide last year. Ourgoal is to symbolically bringsuicide “Out of the Darkness”and to help the American Foun-dation for Suicide Preventionraise money for research andprevention programs.

Despite the troubling statis-tics, suicide can be prevented.Charlene Galvin is chaplain at CarePartnersSolace Center and board member of theNorth Carolina chapter of the AmericanFoundation for Suicide Prevention.

Walk to be held for prevention of suicide

CharleneGalvin

BLACK MOUNTAIN — Bounty and Soul, a localnonprofit run by volunteers, strives to help cre-ate healthier communities by providing fresh,healthy food, nutritional literacy and health andwellness resources to those who need a freshfood supply. It is fighting hunger one market at atime in the Swannanoa Valley.

“I am passionate about eradicating hungerand food insecurity in Western North Carolina,”said Ali Casparian, founder and executive direc-tor of Bounty and Soul. “Currently, one in fourchildren experiences food insecurity in NorthCarolina. That is ridiculous, since we waste asmuch as 40 percent of our food supply in thiscountry.”

Casparian worked more than 20 years as di-rector of a food contract company and managedan organic bakery in New York. She received hercertification as a health and wellness coach fromthe Institute of Integrative Nutrition, the largestschool of its kind in the world. She also is an ad-vanced food healing certified instructor from theSupreme Science Qi Gonga Center.

After she experienced a personal health cri-sis, Casparian left corporate life to pursue a jour-ney into holistic health and wellness, and to shareher knowledge with others. She wants to inspireeach individual to live a happy, healthy life.

Bounty and Soul began in July 2012 and has

By Barbara Hootman barbara@blackmountainnews.com

See NUTRITION, Page D4

SPECIAL TO THE BLACK MOUNTAIN NEWS

Ali Casparian, founder and executive director ofBounty and Soul, speaks at one of the food nonprofit’sevents.

LEARN MORE» Donations may be made to Bounty and Soul, 424W. State St., Black Mountain, NC 28711. » Volunteers are always needed. » For more information, call 419-0533, email in-fo@bountyandsoul.org or visit www.bountyandsoul.org or find the group on Facebook.» Organization partners include Black MountainPresbyterian Church, Black Mountain Rotary Club,Black Mountain-Swannanoa Valley Endowment Fund,The Community Foundation of Western North Caroli-na, Blue Ridge Apartments, Children and Friends En-richment Center, Eat Smart Black Mountain, EpiscopalDiocese of Western North Carolina, Feeding AmericaBack-Pack Program, First at Blue Ridge, Inc., Gardensthat Give, MANNA FoodBank, St James EpiscopalChurch, Society of St. Andrew, Swannanoa ValleyChristian Ministry, Swannanoa Valley Medical Centerand The Kannico Agency.

Product: ASHBrd PubDate: 09-02-2014 Zone: ACT Edition: 1 Page: FeaCov User: shaghani Time: 09-01-2014 17:15 Color: CMYK