For the last year, the district has not seen a teen suicide confirmed, according to a district email that the USJ received. Now, Creek is keeping up the momentum by continuing the Trusted Adult campaign in October. 

Sources of Strength is a teen mental health program that the whole district practices. “It’s a club that is designed to promote positive mental health at Creek, ”said senior Grayden Robb, co-head of Sources of Strength Arts and Murals committee. “The biggest thing that we do in our club meetings is train people to identify people who are struggling with their mental health,” 

This year, Sources of Strength worked on an annual trusted adult campaign. In this campaign, Creek students can find a staff member that they are able to talk to during difficult times. 

“The number one most positive factor against teen suicide is if they have a trusted adult,” Counselor and Sources of Strength advisor Shelly Johnson said.

For the trusted adult campaign, students in their advisories wrote letters to adults. Those staff members will be sent an additional letter explaining that they are invited to a trusted adult breakfast. 

But, according to Johnson, it’s really important that students and staff participate because of the amazing things it has done to the community. In the last year, the district has not had any teen suicides, “which has never happened,” she said.

The goal of students identifying their trusted adults is to add another handle of support and encourage students to instead of being broken down by a challenge, ask for help or just someone to talk to. In addition, it ensures that other students know places to go when a friend is in need of help. “We’re not trying to make people into psychologists,” Robb said “We want to help them be able to guide people to getting the help that they need.”

But having a trusted adult is “a support, not the solution,” according to The National Alliance on Mental Illness. Members of Sources of Strength believe that it’s important to remember that as a trusted adult you should take the people that come to you seriously. “This bond is a doorway for you to encourage the child to get additional support if needed,” the same study said.

The organization also aims to focus on the time ahead, not the past. By doing this, they allow people to think about moving on from things they’ve struggled with, rather than dwelling on the root causes of it. “It’s not focused on sadness, shock or trauma, which you see with a lot of suicide prevention programs,” Johnson said. “It’s really focused on hope, it’s focused on health, and it’s focused on strength.”