Nicole Montero/ Asst. News Director
Mikaila Berkman lost her best friend to suicide six years ago.
Since then, Berkman, a student majoring in hospitality and a building monitor at the University’s Graham Center in the Modesto A. Maidique Campus, has made it her goal to spread awareness and make the topic of suicide “less taboo.”
“He was 21 days away from his twenty-first birthday,” she said. “It was probably one of the hardest things I’ve ever been through… Two years after it happened, I did a [suicide awareness] walk in San Francisco that really helped me.”
When Berkman moved to Florida, she tried finding similar campus walks at different universities.
She had no such luck.
Last year, she reached out to the University’s External Relations office to try to get one incorporated on campus.
“External Relations told me that it’s this whole big production and they would have to shut down the school, so I just said never mind,” Berkman said. “Then, this year, the American Foundation of Suicide Prevention reached out to me and we figured out a way to produce a walk inside the school – that way it wouldn’t be this huge thing.”
AFSP, a leading not-for-profit organization dedicated to preventing suicide, is sponsoring this year’s walk.
Adriana Trespalacios, assistant director of operations for GC and chair of the event, believes that this walk will open up discussion about mental illness.
“I went through an experience with my father and I learned that it is something that people just don’t like to talk about,” she said. “It’s also something that, unfortunately, is happening a lot in all universities. It’s a big issue among college students.”
According to the American Association of Suicidology, suicide is the second leading cause of death among colleges and universities in the United States. The study states that 33 percent of undergraduate and graduate students have considered attempting suicide at least once and over 30 percent of students have reported having suicidal ideations.
“People have said to me things like, ‘It’s been 20 years and now is when I can actually say the word out loud,’” said Trespalacios. “People have been taught to not talk about it and I think this walk will stop that. This is an opportunity to meet people who have been through very similar experiences, people who have felt the same pain and who have had to cope with the same thing.”
To ensure that happens, Trespalacios and her team will be giving out colored beads to attendees.
“Everyone who’s wearing a red bead means that they’ve lost a parent, everyone who’s wearing a blue bead means they’ve had an experience with a sibling and so on,” she said. “You’ll get to share your stories and help each other because you’ll see who has been through what.”
The event will serve as a fundraiser for AFSP – with a goal of raising at least $5,000.
So far, they’ve raised $4,590.
“Now, it’s just about raising awareness,” said Berkman. “If there’s even one student that’s teetering on the thoughts [of suicide] and they come out and talk and that life is saved, then it’s absolutely worth it. It’s OK to talk about this. And it’s important that people can have easily-accessible places to go to do this.”
Berkman has been in both sides of issue and has contemplated suicide.
“I’ve been there. I can personally say I’ve been there,” she said. “But I’ve also been on the other side and it’s devastating to your family and to your friends and, trust me, you will be missed… Talk. Reach out. It gets better.”
Lisa Varela, a sophomore engineering major, is looking forward to the event.
“Suicide affects everyone and we should all care enough to support this walk,” she said. “I’m really glad that FIU was able to do this because I’m sick of everyone shying away from the topic of mental illness. I’m looking forward to some change in the University and I think that this event is the perfect way to start it.”
The planning for the walk began in February and, currently, there are over 290 people registered for the event.
Registration is still open and will close before the walk at 10 a.m. To register, go to afsp.donordrive.com/event/fiu/.
The walk will be held on Saturday, March 21 in the GC Lawn area.
“Don’t ever assume that the other person’s issue is not a big deal. Even if it’s not important to you, don’t brush it off,” said Trespalacios. “Always be someone’s angel. You never know how much a smile can mean for that other person and it can really save a life… Suicide is extremely preventable and, with the right help and sources, it should not be happening.”
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