On Saturday morning, hundreds of people marched in the name of suicide prevention at Jax Beach

It’s been almost 40 years since Jefry Kleine received the call that his sister Jackie had taken her own life, turning his and his family’s lives upside down in an instant.

“It’s one of those scars you always carry. It heals, but it always happens,” Klein told Action News Jax.

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On Saturday morning in Jacksonville Beach, Klein and many others affected by suicide walked arm in arm during the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention’s Out Darkness Walk.

The aim of the event was to provide people affected by this problem with a chance to know that they are not alone in their sadness and to heal.

“I think the best medicine is to talk and have someone who has been through it,” Klein said.

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The event also aimed to raise money for a life-saving cause – Saturday’s event raised over $60,000.

“We are the nation’s largest funder of suicide prevention research,” explained Wendy Mercer of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

I hope we can also save lives on Saturday by raising awareness one dollar and one walker at a time.

“We have resources, we have conversations with the community, like ‘Conversations Save Lives.’ We can take it to businesses, schools, etc. and provide information about the signs of suicide and what to do if we see them,” Mercer explained.

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