The Samaritans, a longstanding suicide-prevention agency in Keene, announced Tuesday it will close its doors at the end of next month.
Executive Director Carmen Trafton said the nonprofit — which was opened in 1981 by a local family who lost a loved one to suicide — will run out of funding June 30. This is for a variety of reasons, she noted, including the lapse in pandemic-related funding. Trafton is the only paid employee.
“We’re trying to make it, not a positive thing, but something that’s OK,” Trafton said. “There are services available now that weren’t when we were founded.”
Among them is the national suicide and crisis hotline, 9-8-8, which switched last summer to its new three-digit number for easier access. The N.H. Department of Health and Human Services also has a rapid-response suicide hotline (1-833-710-6477), text line and mobile crisis unit that can respond immediately.
The Samaritans helps hundreds of people each month, Trafton said, from providing suicide support services like its anonymous hotline to working to reduce the stigma on suicide.
Though the agency is closing, one of its weekly support groups for those who’ve lost a loved one to suicide will continue, Trafton noted. It will still be in Keene on Monday evenings, though the exact time and location are withheld from the public for privacy reasons. Those interested in attending can contact penelopeking43@gmail.com or debmarcotte@hotmail.com.
The Samaritans will host one last event on Sunday, June 4, at 1 p.m. in Keene’s Ashuelot River Park to “say farewell,” according to a news release Tuesday afternoon. All those who’ve been affected by The Samaritans are encouraged to attend, the release notes.
If you or a loved one is struggling with mental illness, Monadnock Family Services offers 24/7 care at 603-357-4400 and personal counseling at its locations in the region. If you are experiencing thoughts of suicide or know anyone who is, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline can be reached at 9-8-8.
Funding for the Monadnock Region Health Reporting Lab comes from several sources, including The Sentinel and several local businesses and private donors. We continue to seek additional support. The newsroom maintains full editorial control over all content produced by the lab.Olivia Belanger can be reached at 352-1234, extension 1439, or obelanger@keenesentinel.com. Followher on Twitter@OBelangerKS.
Olivia Belanger is the health reporter for The Sentinel, covering issues from the opioid crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic to mental health services in the region. A N.H. native, she joined The Sentinel team in August 2019.
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Health Solutions Reporter Olivia Belanger keeps readers informed on issues like mental health, the opioid crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic. Before joining The Sentinel’s staff, Olivia spent a year as the health, nonprofit and education reporter for the Watertown Daily Times in Watertown, N.Y. A 2018 graduate of Keene State College, Olivia decided to move back to the area in the summer of 2019 to tell the unique stories of the Monadnock Region. The Bartlett native now lives in Keene with her fiancé, Ryan, and their Bernese mountain dog, Koa.
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