Families, Teams, and the People Who Show Up
This month: a packed wrestling gym, Maverick’s Mission, survivor voices, and three reads that show why prevention has to reach families, workplaces, and communities.
IN THIS EDITION:
The conversation you missed.
A family turning memory into action.
A study survivors can help shape.
A wrestling gym full of prevention.
Families, first responders, and high-stress jobs
Missed our live webinar? It’s worth going back for!
More than 160 people joined us live for our April webinar with Craig J. Bryan on the future of suicide prevention.
We talked about what current approaches often miss, why firearm suicide remains left out of public conversation, and how communities can create more chances for people to survive moments of crisis.
The recording is now available, watch it here!
Enter Passcode: &!@z^?R6
Community Highlight
Stories and efforts addressing firearm suicide in their communities.
Maverick’s Mission was started in honor of Maverick Baker, a Northern Cambria High School student who died by suicide in February 2022.
His family describes Maverick as a remarkable kid with a contagious smile and laugh, someone who loved his friends and family, brought out the best in others, and gave his best as an athlete and teammate. He enjoyed meeting new people and was often the one willing to start the conversation.
That spirit now carries forward through Maverick’s Mission, which supports mental health awareness, suicide prevention, peer support, charity work, coach training, and educational programs for schools, organizations, and communities.
One part of that work is Mav’s Voice, a program that shares Maverick’s story while opening conversations about family, friendships, bullying, social media, peer pressure, substance use, routines, mental health, and the pressures young people carry.
This June, Maverick’s Mission is also honoring Maverick’s love of baseball through the Maverick Baker All-Star Showcase at PNG Field, in partnership with the Altoona Curve. The event will bring together top high school senior baseball players from the region, with the showcase game scheduled for June 6 at 6:00 PM.
It is more than a baseball game. It is a way for a family, a team, and a community to keep showing up for one another, keep Maverick’s story present, and help more people feel able to talk, reach out, and support someone before a crisis becomes a tragedy. For more information and to donate today, please contact Maverick’s Mission at (814) 934-9491
Do you know of a local person, group, or effort in your community that others might find interesting to learn about? We’d love to feature them! Submit a nomination here.
If You’ve Lost Someone to Firearm Suicide
There is a cost to this kind of loss that rarely gets named. It’s not only financial: it’s the weight families carry, the silence that follows, and the ripple effects that extend far beyond a single home and across a lifetime.
Families are the foundation of a community. When one is fractured by suicide, that foundation is shaken for years to come.
We need to hear from you.
As part of a University of Pennsylvania Fels Institute of Government Capstone project, we are partnering with a graduate researcher to examine The Full Cost of Firearm Suicide in Pennsylvania. This study looks beyond what is typically counted to ask a harder question: what do firearm suicides actually cost families, first responders, schools, workplaces, and local governments?
If you’re willing to be part of this groundbreaking initiative, please email [email protected] or Complete this form.
The Day Prevention Took the Mat
Before 9:00 a.m., nearly all the available gun locks were already gone.
That is not how most youth wrestling tournaments begin. But on March 22, more than 300 people came to Pleasant Valley High School for the Beyond the Mat Classic, a full day of wrestling sponsored by CeaseFirePA Education Fund as part of our firearm suicide prevention work in the Poconos and Slate Belt region of Northeast Pennsylvania.
For many families, coaches, volunteers, and partners, it became a ten-hour Sunday of matches, cheering, and conversation. The wrestling brought people through the doors. What happened around the mats made the day bigger than the competition.
Local partners shared resources, survivor support, and practical guidance on reducing risk during moments of crisis, including safer firearm storage. People stopped between matches, asked questions, picked up resources, and showed that families are ready for practical tools when they are offered in the right setting.
These conversations too often happen only after a loss, behind closed doors, or among people already doing prevention work. At Beyond the Mat, support showed up in the middle of the noise, pride, discipline, and connection of a wrestling gym.
That is what made the day matter. Prevention was not tucked away in a side room. It was part of the event, part of the community, and part of how people showed up for one another.
And now, Beyond the Mat has already been invited back next year!
What We’re Reading
Stories and research shaping how we understand firearm suicide.
Family-Led Firearm Strategy Goes 'Beyond the Screen' to Curb Suicide Risk — A new University of Michigan study shows that suicide prevention can move beyond screening by helping families talk openly, act early, and make firearms harder to reach during moments of crisis.
When Police Die by Suicide, Their Loved Ones Often Lose Benefits. Pennsylvania May Change That. — When a first responder dies by suicide, the loss does not end there. This piece looks at the families left fighting for recognition, benefits, and basic support.
The Impact of Job Strain on Occupational Access to Firearms and Firearm-Related Suicide Among US Workers — This new study gives useful language to a pattern many communities already recognize: when a job comes with high pressure, limited control, and regular firearm access, suicide prevention has to look at the workplace too.