Tyler Barger Memorial Events/FB

Katrina: We miss Tyler everyday. But we’re trying to turn our grief into something positive by helping others. His friends have started the golf outing – Tyler’s Tee –Off – and then my family and I do a walk called the Warrior Walk for Hope. It’s to raise awareness for suicide and mental health, and we partner with a nonprofit, it’s called iR;se and they can provide services to the community.

Kristie Knights is a therapist who runs that. She’s been going into Karns City School District at least once a year to give talks to the students, get training for the teachers, and to provide awareness so that we can break the stigma, and other people aren’t suffering in silence.

Chive: That’s so important. Having people in there trying to stop it from happening, because I can pinpoint times in my own life, whether it was high school or college when I just wanted to give up. It got so bad living in New York City where I was trying to find ways – I wasn’t harming myself – but I was planning. I could walk to the R-train and just jump in front of it, or I could go to the Queensboro Bridge and leap off. Those are scary thoughts to have.

I think it’s really important to be talking about this stuff. That’s why Tyler’s story has stuck with me for so long.

Katrina: Yeah, we don’t want any other families to go through this. So we have the guys back home who are doing such a great job with Tyler’s Tee-Off. They are so organized which like – knowing them growing up – I would have never thought that. It’s really amazing what they do at the golf outing.

Chive: I love that. It’s September, right? Suicide Prevention Month.

Katrina: It is. We always do the golf outing Saturday and then we do the walk Sunday of the same weekend.

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