Hey Guys.
For the last year, we’ve been sending money to the Kristin Brooks Hope Center, which is also known as Hopeline and 1-800-SUICIDE. It’s been far from a one-sided relationship. These guys have helped us provide suicide prevention training to our entire team, including all of our volunteers. They have shared everything from ideas and information to struggles and dreams, and they’ve become friends in the process.
Hopeline was founded by Reese Butler in 1998, after he lost his wife Kristin to suicide. Since that time, the Kristin Brooks Hope Center has provided help to nearly three million callers.
Today, 1-800-SUICIDE is in need of some help of it’s own.
PICK UP THE PHONE is a campaign partnership between the communities of To Write Love on Her Arms and PostSecret to provide support for the work of the National Hopeline Network and the Kristin Brooks Hope Center (KBHC).
Over the past decade, the Kristin Brooks Hope Center and 1-800-SUICIDE have helped thousands of people through the Hopeline network. With your support and with the support of TWLOHA and PostSecret, they will be able to continue to provide this assistance, along with the comfort of complete confidentiality.
As a result of the many calls that 1-800-SUICIDE receives every day, and because of a delay in government funding, Hopeline is struggling to pay their phone bill. If this bill is not paid, the government will be allowed to fully take control of 1-800-SUICIDE. Part of what makes Hopeline such a powerful resource is that the calls placed to this number are completely private and confidential. We believe that the responsibility for providing a private and confidential environment in which to find help should remain in the hands of those who had the heart and compassion to begin this work ten years ago.
For these reasons, TWLOHA is encouraging everyone to support the PICK UP THE PHONE campaign in the following ways:
1. Donate directly to Hopeline.
2. Join the Hopeline 99 Club
3. Buy the new PICK UP THE PHONE shirt in the TWLOHA Online Store. 100% of proceeds go to Hopeline.
4. Sign up to support PICK UP THE PHONE via SocialVibe
5. Add a PICK UP THE PHONE banner to your website or MySpace page:
The money that comes from these donations (and t-shirt sales) will be used to help pay the phone bill that connects 50,000 calls per month to the National Hopeline Network, and to keep 1-800-SUICIDE in the hands of The Kristin Brooks Hope Center. This support also paves the way for future services, such as training of online counselors to provide assistance through one-on-one live Internet chat.
With your support, we can work together to prevent tragedy and to stand with Hopeline in this pivotal moment. In moments of bravery and confusion and honesty, people turn to 1-800-SUICIDE. Nearly three million of them. The folks at Hopeline have been answering those calls for ten years, picking up the phone when it’s mattered most. Now it’s our turn. This is our moment to respond.
We are proud to introduce:
PICK UP THE PHONE.
Peace to you.
jamie
PS: Here’s a few words from PostSecret founder Frank Warren:
“I think TWLOHA and PostSecret are very special websites and communities…
These communities are precious, fragile, strong and meaningful… What a thrill to be combining forces to help Reese Butler and Hopeline. I have been working with Reese since 2005 and before that I was a volunteer answering Hopeline calls at a Hopeline crisis center. I personally know the good works that Reese is behind and truly appreciate all the time and effort you all are contributing to. I believe it is some of the most important work being done on the planet.”