Hundreds expected to join Hope Walk in Richmond, in the name of suicide prevention

The Hope Walk will take place on Saturday, February 15, and attendees will meet at the Richmond Tennis Courts and will walk along Ham Common to the Hawkesbury Information Centre, opposite the RAAF base at Clarendon.

Organiser Diane Russell, a Richmond resident, said the event's purpose is twofold - to raise awareness and break the stigma of suicide, and to show support for those who have lost a loved one to suicide.

Ms Russell lost her son, Jason, to suicide in 2015. He was 31, and left behind a wife and family.

"[The Hope Walk] is about you, me and our community supporting and strengthening each other from our grief of suicide," Ms Russell told the Gazette.

"Don't let their suicide be ignored. It's a death that is out of control."

The entire Hawkesbury community is invited to come along to the event. Attendees will gather from 8.30am at the tennis courts, and the walk will begin at 9am.

Attendees are invited to wear something yellow in honour of friends and family members who have died from suicide.

Ms Russell will be representing the Hope 4 U Foundation - a new Hawkesbury-based support service launched to help prevent further family crisis in the area and ensure the well-being and safety of families who have lost loved-ones to suicide.

Find out more at hope4u.com.au or call Diane Russell on 0405 468 294.

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