Canada Notes: Partners in support of Suicide Awareness

St. Matthew’s, diocese of Ottawa, has become the first parish in the Anglican Church of Canada to partner with the Council of the North in support of suicide awareness and prevention in remote communities of the north.

“Suicide has become one of the great spiritual battles of our time,” said National Indigenous Anglican Bishop Mark MacDonald, who signed the agreement May 9 on behalf of the Council. The Rev. Canon Pat Johnston, and people’s warden Richard Trites signed the two-year agreement on behalf of the congregation.

“The suicide rate in First Nations communities is twice the national average, and 11 times higher than the national average in Inuit communities,” reported Crosstalk, the newspaper of the diocese of Ottawa.

Bev Jensen, chair of St. Matthew’s outreach committee, said the parish’s support will help the Council “to bring together grassroots leaders from parish communities to share, learn and develop local and regional partnered-prevention responses to the critical issue of suicide.” The partnership will also help train parish volunteers in suicide awareness and prevention, and  suicide crisis intervention.

Also on hand for the signing ceremony were Cynthia Patterson, the Council of the North’s project co-ordinator for the suicide prevention and awareness program.