{"id":64590,"date":"2019-10-28T03:20:32","date_gmt":"2019-10-28T03:20:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/sources-of-strength-gears-up-for-the-year\/"},"modified":"2026-03-31T15:13:32","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T15:13:32","slug":"sources-of-strength-gears-up-for-the-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/sources-of-strength-gears-up-for-the-year\/","title":{"rendered":"Sources of Strength gears up for the year"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\"About
About 50 students came out for Sources of Strength training in late September to become peer leaders this year.<\/span>Carrie Schneider\/Courtesy photo<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

It takes a whole community to confront youth suicide \u2013 and people and programs in place for crisis response, intervention and prevention.<\/p>\n

While it\u2019s crucial to have supports at all points of the spectrum, Montezuma County schools hope that by strengthening the preventative piece they can keep crises at bay. And that\u2019s where Sources of Strength comes in \u2013 a program that works \u201cupstream\u201d and gives kids a foundation to cope with their struggles.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow do we help kids before they are in a place of crisis?\u201d said Carrie Schneider, a counselor and Sources of Strength coordinator at the Montezuma-Cortez Middle School.<\/p>\n

Sources of Strength came to Montezuma County several years ago after the state\u2019s Office of Suicide Prevention awarded<\/a> a grant to the Pi\u00f1on Project for Sources of Strength and \u201cQuestion, Persuade and Refer\u201d training.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s an intervention approach, so that\u2019s on one side of it,\u201d said Kylie Caraher, suicide prevention coordinator with the Pi\u00f1on Project. \u201cAnd Sources of Strength is on the other end of it, which is hopeful, positive, resiliency building.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 2017, 1,181 people died by suicide in Colorado, according to the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention<\/a>. The state had the 10th-highest rate in the nation.<\/p>\n

The CDC also found that in 2017 suicide was the second-leading cause of death<\/a> for people ages 10-34.<\/p>\n

Last school year, after two middle school student suicides<\/a> shook the district, Schneider got connected with the program.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were having conversations of how can we tackle this,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd I\u2019m very passionate about the prevention aspect and the strength-based. I want to be strength-based in my focus.\u201d<\/p>\n

Schneider spoke with staff from the Pi\u00f1on Project who connected her with the grant and program. She became a Sources of Strength trainer, as did a few others in the community \u2013 helpful because it means the district can run trainings locally.<\/p>\n

All three school districts in Montezuma County are involved with Sources of Strength, Caraher said.<\/p>\n

The program operates through kindness-spreading campaigns, along with teaching students how to understand their feelings and handle their emotions.<\/p>\n

One part of Sources of Strength focuses on connecting students to adult advisers, someone they can go to in times of struggle.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf they don\u2019t know how to manage their emotions in positive ways, and they don\u2019t have that trusted adult in school,\u201d Schneider said, \u201cthat\u2019s when there\u2019s risk.\u201d<\/p>\n

The peer component also is critical because sometimes, adults might not understand what young people are going through, from bullying to academic pressures to the stress of fitting in.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like we can learn more from each other than we can learn from adults, because we\u2019ve been together in this point of time,\u201d said Chandler Snyder, an eighth grade student and peer leader with Sources of Strength. \u201cWhile things were different when some of the staff were going to school.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey can lead people out of their struggles and help them see the light,\u201d said Cecilia Thom, another eighth grade peer leader.<\/p>\n

Working upstream<\/div>\n

The upstream model is a term used commonly in public health.<\/p>\n

It comes with a story analogy, and while there are some variations, the one Schneider tells goes like this: A woman living in a village by a waterfall started noticing children falling into the river. She would rescue the children before they went over the waterfall, but still others continued to fall into the water. The village sprang into action, hiring lifeguards and building watchtowers, but they weren\u2019t able to save all the children.<\/p>\n

One day, the woman began to walk upstream, upsetting villagers who wanted her help at the site of the danger.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd she goes, \u2018Well, I\u2019m going to stop them from falling in in the first place,\u2019\u201d Schneider said. \u201cSo that\u2019s that idea of the upstream prevention, and even that idea of, when a kid does fall in, if they have these strength-based practices, they\u2019re able to find ways to pull them out themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n

In terms of suicide prevention, the model involves setting a strong foundation for young people so they know how to identify and deal with feelings of anxiety, depression and anger. It focuses on strengthening \u201crocks\u201d that students can fall back on in times of stress \u2013 positive friends, mentors, healthy activities, family support, generosity, spirituality, medical access and mental health.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a bulletin board out here to say, \u2018How are you feeling?\u2019 and then \u2018What strengths have you turned to?\u2019\u201d Schneider said. \u201cThat\u2019s the common language we\u2019re trying to create for our kids, to start recognizing how they feel and knowing that instead of doing something that\u2019s going to cause more harm, reacting based on anger, anxiety, or sadness, these are actually going to help them bounce back quicker.\u201d<\/p>\n

They also try and normalize struggles, to help students realize that they\u2019re not alone.<\/p>\n

The Pi\u00f1on Project\u2019s Caraher said conversations are shifting across the state. One change is that people are willing to talk about the issue, and even say the word \u201csuicide.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another change revolves around how it is perceived.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat they\u2019re starting to find, and what research is showing, is it\u2019s getting away from just \u2018It\u2019s a mental health problem\u2019 to \u2018A lot of it is hardship-based and trauma-based,\u2019\u201d Caraher said. \u201cAnd it\u2019s not just people that have a mental illness.\u201d<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s plans<\/div>\n

The program plans a variety of initiatives this year. At the middle school, youth leaders meet every Wednesday at lunch to talk about student needs and plan schoolwide campaigns.<\/p>\n

About 50 middle school students have opted to become peer leaders and underwent training in late September, according to Schneider.<\/p>\n

Their campaigns range from making posters that encourage kindness to shooting videos for use in classrooms. One project teaches students to use social media in a supportive way, addressing potentially toxic issues that could arise outside school. They\u2019ve even created a Sources of Strength Snapchat filter.<\/p>\n

Leading up to the homecoming football game, the group organized a \u201cDude \u2026 Be Nice\u201d campaign to coincide with Spirit Week and encouraged students to show kindness and gratitude to classmates, school staff and community members.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs you become generous, you see more opportunity to help other people, and I feel like that can always be a blessing,\u201d Snyder said.<\/p>\n

Eighth grader Alison Freeman has been involved with Sources of Strength since she was in sixth grade.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just find that it makes me a better person, while I\u2019m helping other people, because being kind to someone else always makes you feel good,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

She added that it also helps students learn from one another.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt helps me feel better about myself,\u201d Freeman said. \u201cI struggle with anxiety, and Sources of Strength has really helped me bring that down a lot, compared to how it used to be.\u201d<\/p>\n

ealvero@the-journal.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

\n

Help available<\/h4>\n

Montezuma County residents who are struggling with depression, substance abuse or suicidal thoughts may call Axis Health System\u2019s 24-hour crisis hotline at 970-247-5245 or the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 800-273-8255.
\n Axis\u2019 Montezuma County offices are at Cortez Integrated Healthcare, 691 E. Empire St.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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