Expert Leadership

Consumer/Survivor Subcommittee Members

The Consumer/Survivor Subcommittee will review standard network practices, marketing materials/promotional campaigns, evaluations of network coverage, and caller demographics to ensure that the Lifeline is effectively reaching critical and diverse populations at higher risk for suicide. This subcommittee will submit their recommendations to both the Lifeline's leadership and the Lifeline Steering Committee.

Karen Marshall (KMarshall@suicidology.org)
Co-Chair

Ms. Marshall is the Program Development Director for the American Association of Suicidology (AAS), headquartered in Washington, DC. Prior to her full-time work with AAS, she was a career journalist with extensive experience in print, broadcast, and Web-based reporting. After losing her father and an uncle to suicide, she became involved in prevention efforts, first as a volunteer and later in full-time professional capacities. She has helped to advance the work of nonprofit suicide prevention organizations since 1990. She began her work at The Link Counseling Center in Atlanta as assistant to its executive director, Iris Bolton, and has received training from noted experts in the field of suicide prevention, intervention, and healing. She has taught basic suicide prevention skills to community groups, schools, first responders, medical professionals, and civic and professional associations. She is a member of the National Advisory Board for the University of Michigan's Depression Center.

Ms. Marshall has assisted several communities and States with forming suicide prevention coalitions and task forces, and she was involved in developing Virginia's Youth Suicide Prevention Plan (expanded in 2005 to a comprehensive, across-the-lifespan suicide prevention plan) as well as Michigan's Suicide Prevention Plan. She served as the first president of the Kristin Brooks Hope Center (KBHC), which developed the National Hopeline Network, 1-800-SUICIDE. At AAS, she manages national research projects under contracts with the Federal Railroad Administration and the Federal Transit Administration to develop causal analyses of suicide on rail property and to design and pilot test effective countermeasures. She also manages AAS's Recognizing and Responding to Suicide Risk: Essential Skills for Clinicians training program, and the A Million Voices Campaign.

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Terry Wise, J.D. (terry@terrywise.com)
Co-Chair

Widowed at 35 following her spouse's death from Lou Gehrig's Disease (ALS), and after surviving a near-fatal suicide attempt, Terry Wise spent the next several years in treatment. A former trial attorney, Wise has since devoted her life to international public speaking and full-time writing (www.TerryWise.com). She now travels to over 50 cities a year as a keynote speaker, continuing education instructor, and workshop presenter - speaking to both the general public and professionals on topics related to depression, grief, long-term care-giving, suicide prevention, and the process of recovering emotional health.

Wise is the author of Waking Up: Climbing Through the Darkness (foreword by Rabbi Harold S. Kushner, best-selling author of When Bad Things Happen to Good People), a highly-acclaimed book that provides a roadmap for the restoration of emotional health. Waking Up is in use at numerous universities, including Columbia, Rutgers, Northeastern, St. Mary's, and Sacramento State and has been endorsed by prominent experts in related fields. Waking Up has also been adopted for use in Crisis Centers and in the training materials for the Core Competency Curriculum developed by the American Association of Suicidology and Suicide Prevention Resource Center (SPRC). Wise is the recipient of a National Mental Health Award for "distinguished achievement and work that has had a major impact on the depression community."

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James Clemons (JamesTClemons@aol.com)

Beginning his career as a Methodist Minister in Arkansas, Dr. Clemons has become a national leader in suicide prevention efforts within faith-based communities. He earned his Doctor of Philosophy degree in Biblical Studies from Duke University, and became Chaplain to the College and a member of the Faculty at Morningside College in Sioux City, IA, in 1963, where, in 1967, he was named Outstanding Professor. He was awarded an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree from Hendrix College in 1968 and taught at Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington, DC, for twenty-eight years. Upon his retirement in 1995, the Seminary conferred upon him the title, Professor Emeritus. He has received honors for his scholarship in biblical studies and for humanitarian services. This led to his conducting workshops for religious leaders, preaching in several states and writing articles. He wrote What does the Bible say about Suicide?, now in its third edition, and edited and contributed to Perspectives on Suicide, Sermons on Suicide, and Children of Jonah: Personal Stories of Survivors of Suicide Attempts, with foreword by Judy Collins. His latest book is Crisis of Conscience: Arkansas Methodists and the Civil Rights Struggle (2007). He is now editing, with Melinda Moore, Liturgical and Homiletical Resources for the Suicide Funeral, and with Frank Campbell and others, Suicide Prevention in America: from Edwin Shneidman to Capitol Hill (title tentative).

After his retirement he founded the Organization for Attempters and Survivors of Suicide in Interfaith Services, and was its President until 2006. OASSIS was a charter member of the National Council for Suicide Prevention. In 2000, OASSIS sponsored the first National Interfaith Conference on Religion and Suicide in America and, with the National Organization for People of Color Against Suicide and The Healing Center of Memphis, sponsored the first Conference on Suicide and the Black Church. In October 2005, OASSIS sponsored the first National Conference for Survivors of Suicide Attempts, their Family and Friends, Healthcare Professionals, Clergy and Laity, also held in Memphis.

The work of OASSIS has been highly commended by former U. S. Surgeons Generals Dr. M. Jocelyn Elders, a member of its Board of Advisors, and Dr. David M. Satcher, the National Council of Suicide Prevention, and CrisisLink of Arlington, Virginia. He now lives in Gaithersburg, MD, where continues his consulting and lecturing.

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Heidi Bryan (feelingbluespc@aol.com)

Heidi Bryan is the founder of Feeling Blue Suicide Prevention Council, a suicide prevention, education, and support nonprofit organization for Pennsylvania. Heidi has battled with depression most of her life, is a suicide attempt survivor, and lost her brother to suicide in 1995. Heidi is the Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors for SPAN USA and recipient of the Sandy Martin Grassroots Award in 2005. Ms. Bryan is a certified QPR gatekeeper trainer, a provisional ASIST trainer, co-facilitator of a survivor of suicide support group, and co-chairman of Pennsylvania's Adult and Older Adult Suicide Prevention Initiative. She recently developed the booklet, After an Attempt: The Emotional Impact of a Suicide Attempt on Families, which was distributed to all the hospitals in Pennsylvania. Through Heidi's efforts, Pennsylvania adopted a Suicide Prevention Week Resolution that coincides with the National Suicide Prevention Week.

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Franklin Cook, M.A. (franklin@unifiedcommunities.com)

Franklin is the owner of Unified Community Solutions and publisher and editor of "Suicide Prevention News and Comment" (http://tinyurl.com/SPNAC-about). He is a survivor of his father's suicide, in 1978. Franklin delivers training for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention's (AFSP) Suicide Survivor Support Group Facilitator Program and its Survivor Outreach Program. He also continues volunteer work in his hometown as facilitator of the Black Hills Area Survivors of Suicide. He supervises the S.D. Suicide Awareness Partnership, a statewide youth suicide prevention project, facilitates implementation of the South Dakota Strategy for Suicide Prevention, and delivers the LivingWorks workshops ASIST (Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training), safeTALK (suicide alertness training), and Working Together (caregiver collaboration training). He helped found the Front Porch Coalition, a grassroots suicide prevention task force in Rapid City, S.D., and was its first executive director. Franklin serves on both the Survivor Council and the Chapter Leadership Council for AFSP and as a member of the Survivor Division of the American Association of Suicidology (AAS). He was a member of the board of directors of the Suicide Prevention Action Network (SPAN USA) for six years, before its merger with AFSP in 2009.

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Mark Davis, M.A. (madpride1988@yahoo.com)

Mark Davis is a liaison to several communities including behavioral health consumer/survivors, suicide attempt survivors, disabilities and individuals and groups representing sexual and gender minority cultures. He is focused on the Philadelphia Behavioral Health System recovery transformation efforts to include lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) affirming services. He is the Founding President of the PA Mental Health Consumers' Association in 1987 and has worked in the mental health consumer/survivor recovery civil rights movement since 1985. Mark is a suicide attempt survivor and dedicated to prevention to honor of his sister Jennifer who died by suicide in 1995. He tested HIV-positive September 27, 1988 and is at the forefront of national efforts to eliminate behavioral health disparities and stigmas connected to being HIV-positive and a gay person living with and recovering from bipolar II, addictions and hearing loss. Mark facilitates the DBSA Pink & Blues, a peer-run recovery support group for LGBT people living with mental health issues at St. Luke's Episcopal Church in the heart of Philadelphia.

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Deb DuFour, M.S., C.S.A.C., I.C.S. (Deb.DuFour@co.washington.wi.us)

Deb DuFour works as the program manager for the Acute Care Services Crisis Intervention Team of Washington County located in West Bend, WI. The program is county operated and provides 24/7 mobile crisis intervention services and answers the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline for both Washington and Ozaukee counties. Deb has been with the county human services department for 17 years working as a detox counselor, case manager and with the crisis program. The department provides mental health and substance abuse services to county residents by operating and/or contracting for services. The agency has developed many partnerships with local and statewide providers of mental health services to ensure quality care for participants. The agency promotes a recovery model and strives to offer responsive programs that will facilitate self-sufficiency and enhance the quality of life for the individual and the community. Deb has a Master of Science degree in Organizational Leadership and Quality and is a Certified Substance Abuse Counselor and an Independent Clinical Supervisor in the state of Wisconsin. Deb has worked as an instructor of substance abuse counseling coursework at an area technical college. She is a "Risking Connection" trauma curriculum trainer and has recently become an ASIST trainer. Deb resides in SE Wisconsin with her husband and daughter where they enjoy spending time at the lake and with family and friends.

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Dar Emme (demme@yellowribbon.org)

Ms. Emme is founder and deputy director of Yellow Ribbon International Suicide Prevention Program®. She is the survivor of her son, Mike's death by suicide in 1994. She led the development of the Yellow Ribbon Training programs that are being used by chapters and program sites in all States and internationally. Working and traveling full time with the program, she is the co-founder of the Yellow Ribbon International Youth Council and has addressed and taught more than 200,000 youth that it is OK to Ask for Help!®. She was appointed to the Colorado Governor's Suicide Prevention Advisory Commission in 1998, helping to develop the Colorado State Suicide Prevention Plan and create the Colorado Office of Suicide Prevention and the Suicide Prevention Coalition of Colorado. She also is a founding member of the National Council of Suicide Prevention. Ms. Emme works to forge collaborations with organizations and has partnered with the American Osteopathic Association and BBYO (B'nai B'rith Youth Organization). She serves as a national judge for the Alliance of the American Psychiatric Association's When Not to Keep a Secret national essay contest. She is co-author of "I'll Always Be With You" in Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul and "Legacy of the Yellow Mustang".

Ms. Emme has worked to establish an international Awareness and Prevention Week, which is recognized by the U.S. Senate and State Governors and has been observed nationally the third full week of September for 10 years. She has also been recognized for her work by the U.S. House of Representatives.

Dar is also a survivor of her own attempts and has worked to empower and save youth her entire life through volunteerism, mentoring and training. Her work has included helping numerous communities across the country (using her extensive background Search and Rescue coordination & training) to empower and mobilize their local and regional resources for people of all ages.

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Larry Fricks (larryfricks@windstream.net)

Larry Fricks currently serves as the Director of the Appalachian Consulting Group and Vice President of Peer Services for the Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance. For 13 years Larry was Georgia's Director of the Office of Consumer Relations and Recovery in the Division of Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities and Addictive Diseases. He is a founder of the Georgia Mental Health Consumer Network that now has some 3,000 members, a founder of the Georgia Consumer Council, a founder of Georgia's Peer Specialist Training and Certification and a founder of the Georgia Peer Support Institute. He served on the Planning Board for the Surgeon General's Report on Mental Health, and currently serves on the Board of Directors of Mental Health America and on the Advisory Board for The Carter Center Mental Health Journalism Fellowships.

Larry has a journalism degree from the University of Georgia and has won journalism awards from the Associated Press, the Georgia Press Association and Gannett Newspapers. He is the 1995 recipient of the Clifford W. Beers Award given annually by Mental Health America and the 2001 recipient of the American Association for World Health Award for significant contributions to improving community mental health. In 2004 he received the Recovery Award from International Association of Psychosocial Rehabilitation Services and in 2008 the Lifetime Achievement Voice Award from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration for the development and adoption of multiple innovative, recovery-oriented programs and services.

Larry's recovery story and life's work to support the recovery of others was published by HarperCollins in the New York Time's best-selling book Strong at the Broken Places by Richard M. Cohen and was featured on the Today Show in 2008.

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Kevin Hines (jkevin057@ymail.com)

In high school John Kevin Hines loved performing in plays and playing sports. Being around people and being active were things that came easily to him. That changed when he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder at age 17. He struggled to find a treatment. In 2000, during his freshman year of college, Kevin attempted to take his own life. He jumped off of the Golden Gate Bridge and luckily he is one of 29 people to have survived that jump. Kevin has since learned to deal with mental illness in a healthy way, and through speaking out, he is providing a positive example to hundreds of thousands of young people dealing with all types of mental health issues. His story is one of amazing strength and compassion, and his presentation discusses bipolar disorder, depression, suicide and survival. Kevin's devotion to living every single day grounded to the things he loves comes through loud and clear; he is truly an inspiration. During the past 5 years Kevin has spoken to over 150,000 people about his experiences and reached millions in media interviews. He was featured in the film The Bridge and also appeared in People, Time, and Newsweek magazines and shared his story on Larry King Live, Prime Time, Anderson Cooper 360, 20/20, and many other national news programs. Kevin is working with the Bridge Rail Foundation to raise the rail on the Golden Gate Bridge to prevent suicides.

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Ann Kirkwood, M.A. (kirkann@isu.edu)

Ann Kirkwood has a master's degree in communications from Boise State University and undergraduate degrees from the University of Washington. She specializes in social marketing, anti stigma programs, and school-and community-based mental health and suicide prevention programs for rural areas. The Better Todays. Better Tomorrows. gatekeeper training program she directs has been recognized as an evidence-informed practice by the National Child Traumatic Stress Network, the National Association for Rural Mental Health, the National Alliance on Mental Illness and the RAND Corp. Ms. Kirkwood is a senior research associate for Idaho State University's Institute of Rural Health. She is a mental health consumer and advocate.

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DeQuincy Lezine, Ph.D. (dlezine@gmail.com)

Dr. Lezine attempted suicide during college, but turned his personal despair into advocacy by forming the first student-led college mental health and suicide prevention group (Brown University chapter of the Suicide Prevention Action Network; B-SPAN). Since 1996, Dr. Lezine has worked with many organizations including SPAN USA, National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (NAMI), the Organization of Attempters and Survivors in Interfaith Services (OASSIS), and the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline to promote suicide prevention. After graduating from UCLA with a Ph.D. in clinical psychology he joined the University of Rochester Center for the Prevention and Study of Suicide as a postdoctoral research fellow. He is the author of Eight Stories Up: An Adolescent Chooses Hope Over Suicide, released in April 2008 by Oxford University Press. He is interested in building community support for mental health promotion and suicide prevention, with a particular interest in increasing the roles for attempt survivors in prevention programs.

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Alison Malmon (alison@activeminds.org)

Alison K. Malmon is founder and Executive Director of Active Minds, Inc., the leading organization dedicated to utilizing the student voice to raise mental health awareness on college campuses. She started the program in 2001, while a junior at the University of Pennsylvania, following the suicide of her older brother, Brian, one year earlier. Wanting to combat the stigma that had caused her brother to suffer in silence and ultimately take his own life, she created a group on her campus that promoted an open, enlightened dialogue around the issues. Just two years later, Ms. Malmon formed the 501(c)(3) organization in order to develop and support chapters of the student group on campuses around the country. She currently serves as President and Executive Director of the non-profit organization, setting up chapters of the student group and creating a unified national voice for young adults in the mental health awareness movement. In a short time, Active Minds has grown to develop over 150 chapters on college campuses throughout North America, with anticipated growth to 300 chapters by 2010. Each group's goal is to promote the student voice in educating young adults about mental health and available resources for seeking help.

For her efforts Alison has been named Washingtonian of the Year by Washingtonian Magazine; Potomac, Maryland Citizen of the Year; a Woman of Distinction from American Association of University Women; and received the Tipper Gore Remember the Children Award from Mental Health America. She has been profiled in the New York Times, CNN, Glamour magazine, and Washington Post. Having graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 2003, Alison now lives in Washington, DC where she sits on a number of planning committees and Boards of Directors and, in her spare time, teaches the flying trapeze in Baltimore.

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Charles Robbins (charles.robbins@thetrevorproject.org)

Charles has spent his career in nonprofit management and his experience includes founding organizations, fundraising and development, as well as leading and inspiring teams of volunteers. Charles joined The Trevor Project as Executive Director in February of 2007 following his role as director of development for the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force. Under Charles' leadership, the Task Force tripled its annual budget during his five-year tenure (from $3.2 million to $9.5 million). Prior to the Task Force, Charles served in various senior fundraising roles within the development department at the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD). A Colorado native, Charles has served as executive director of AIDS, Medicine & Miracles in Boulder and as founder of Project Angel Heart, a Denver-based organization that delivers meals to people living with HIV/AIDS and other life-threatening challenges. He holds a certificate in Nonprofit Administration from the University of Colorado, Denver, and received his credential as a Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE) from the Association of Fundraising Professionals. Charles serves as a member of the Suicide Prevention Plan Advisory Committee for the California Department of Mental Health. Charles and his partner, Damon, reside in Los Angeles, California.

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Susan Soule (susoule@gmail.com)

Ms. Soule moved to Alaska in 1979, spending her first 8 years in the village of Aniak as director of the Kuskokwim Native Association Community Counseling Program and as consultant to the Yukon Kuskokwim Health Corporation in suicide prevention. In 1987, she began her 18-year career in the State government, working for the Divisions of Mental Health, Alcoholism and Drug Abuse, and Behavioral Health. Focusing on community-based programs for rural Alaska, she developed and administered the Community-based Suicide Prevention Program (CBSPP) and, in cooperation with the University of Alaska and a number of Native Health Corporations and nonprofits, the Rural Human Services System Project (RHS). The CBSPP awards small grants to Alaskan villages and provided training and support for their work to develop and implement community-directed projects to prevent suicide and self-destructive behavior. The RHS program, through grants to Native Health Corporations and social service agencies, trains, employs, and supervises a statewide network of village-based counselors. Ms. Soule was a member of the Alaska Statewide Suicide Prevention Council and the expert panel at the National Suicide Prevention Conference in Reno in 1998. She retired from State Government in January 2005 and currently trains and consults on community-based suicide prevention and health promotion. This work has taken her to Russia, Canada, and Greenland as well as numerous villages in Alaska. She is a board member of the Alaska Injury Prevention Center, an adjunct faculty and consultant at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, and a registered ASIST trainer.

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Leslie Storm, M.A. (lstorm@orpartnership.org)

Ms. Soule moved to Alaska in 1979, spending her first 8 years in the village of Aniak as director of the Kuskokwim Native Association Community Counseling Program and as consultant to the Yukon Kuskokwim Health Corporation in suicide prevention. In 1987, she began her 18-year career in the State government, working for the Divisions of Mental Health, Alcoholism and Drug Abuse, and Behavioral Health. Focusing on community-based programs for rural Alaska, she developed and administered the Community-based Suicide Prevention Program (CBSPP) and, in cooperation with the University of Alaska and a number of Native Health Corporations and nonprofits, the Rural Human Services System Project (RHS). The CBSPP awards small grants to Alaskan villages and provided training and support for their work to develop and implement community-directed projects to prevent suicide and self-destructive behavior. The RHS program, through grants to Native Health Corporations and social service agencies, trains, employs, and supervises a statewide network of village-based counselors. Ms. Soule was a member of the Alaska Statewide Suicide Prevention Council and the expert panel at the National Suicide Prevention Conference in Reno in 1998. She retired from State Government in January 2005 and currently trains and consults on community-based suicide prevention and health promotion. This work has taken her to Russia, Canada, and Greenland as well as numerous villages in Alaska. She is a board member of the Alaska Injury Prevention Center, an adjunct faculty and consultant at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, and a registered ASIST trainer.

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William Young, D.Min. (yhealer@aol.com)

Dr. William Young has over 33 years in ministry and over 30 years in counseling. He is a licensed Professional Counselor and serves as Bishop of Greater Fellowship Faith Tabernacle in Bolivar, Tennessee and The Healing Center Full Gospel Baptist Church, Divisions of Greater Fellowship Ministries, Inc. Dr. Young is a Veteran, having served his country during the Vietnam War era. He was the first African American Staff Chaplain to serve at Methodist Health Systems in Memphis from June 1981 to July 1994. Before accepting that assignment he served as Staff Chaplain at Western State Mental Institute in Bolivar, Tennessee. Young is a Clinical Member of The American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy. He is licensed by the State of Tennessee in three areas: Marriage and Family Therapist; Professional Counselor; and as a Clinical Pastoral Therapist. He is a graduate of Lemoyne-Owen College. He earned his M. Div. in Pastoral Care and Counseling from Memphis Theological Seminary and did doctoral work on his D. Min at Louisville Presbyterian Seminary completing the doctorate of Ministry at Carolina Theological Seminary. He is a charter member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity. The 30 years of experience in the field of counseling has allowed Dr. Young to be a pioneer in the field among African American Clinicians. He specializes in marriage and family, grief, stress and burnout. He and his wife Dianne have faithfully co-hosted a Christian Talk Show, ON THE ROAD TO HEALING each Sunday morning on Memphis' 1340 WLOK AM since 1994. The talk show is one of the Mid-South's most popular call-in broadcasts. It is also the only African-American Christian Talk Show in the Mid-South Area. The Young's also co-hosted "Memphis On The Air, Night Talk," a two-hour, nightly public affairs, call-in show heard by thousands around the world via radio and the internet, Monday through Friday (9PM - 11PM). The final hour was utilized accepting prayer requests from individuals and families.

He and his wife hosted the first National Suicide and the Black Church Conference at The Healing Center in Memphis, Tennessee, in 2003. These Conferences continue to grow biennially, sharpening the awareness of the increased number of African Americans now making suicide an option. The last Conference was held June 20-22, 2007, and was attended by more than 300 individuals. Young's counseling expertise and experience is greatly respected throughout the Mid-South Area, state and country. Dr. Young has partnered with numerous agencies, churches and community leaders in regards to making aware the needs of the African American community.

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