Local organization Touched By Suicide will be holding its 10th annual memorial walk on Nov. 5 at Parker Square. The North Texas based group provides support for family, friends and spouses of individuals who have taken their own lives.

Touched By Suicide and its first memorial walk were started by Sue Endsley, a former Flower Mound resident who lost her youngest son to suicide on Oct. 1, 2000.

“Nobody saw any signs. Nobody expected anything,” Endsley said. “It caught us all by surprise.”

Following the loss, Endsley said she had to drive up to an hour and a half to attend a support group for loved ones of those lost to suicide. Because of the distance, she formed Touched By Suicide, a support group in Flower Mound.

“I knew there were other people here that probably felt like I did,” Endsley said.

Eventually, Endsley decided to organize a memorial walk at Parker Square to commemorate loved ones, fund mental health initiatives in the community and raise awareness about suicide. She said she chose this venue because it was public, in hopes that its location would reduce the stigma and bring the community together.

“It’s almost like a family reunion,” Endsley said. “There’s camaraderie in having something in common … that makes you want to come, but it’s also very emotional because of the reason you’re there.”

Proceeds from the walk all go towards suicide prevention and awareness efforts in Denton County and LISD, including LOSS, the Local Outreach for Suicide Survivors team. When there is a suicide in the community, LOSS is called in from the medical examiner’s office to talk to the family and offer support.

“We’ve actually been able to raise enough funds through the walk, donations and sponsorships to provide funding,” LaNelia Ramette, member of the LOSS team said. “I love the fact that we have a team in place … to get help to these people quicker, and get them into some kind of support group or counseling.”

Endsley facilitated a Touched By Suicide support group at Trinity Presbyterian Church for five years before moving away from the area. She plans on coming back and attending the walk for its 10th anniversary.

“The important thing is that it brings families together,” Endsley said. “People come out to celebrate the life of their loved one. And that’s why I’m glad to see it continue on.”

The organization’s Flower Mound chapter is now facilitated by Ramette. After her son passed away in June of 2010, she began attending a local support group five months later. For Ramette, just listening to other people’s stories every meeting made her feel less alone.

“You feel connected to all the individuals there, because you know all of them have experienced a loss to suicide,” Ramette said.

Through her first encounters with support groups, Ramette found she was able to be open with people who could relate to her grief without judgement.

“For a lot of people there’s a stigma attached to [suicide], so people won’t really talk to you about it,” Ramette said. “I think in getting a group of individuals together that have a common bond, you can find a way to memorialize the one you’ve lost.”

Years later, Ramette decided to take a group facilitator position in Flower Mound. When she began her work as a Touched By Suicide board member, Ramette said she wanted to find purpose after the loss of her child.

“You want to find meaning in something that’s so horrific,” Ramette said.

Ramette said she was fortunate enough to have mental health professionals to get her and her family in touch with counselors and support groups and she knew she was one of the lucky ones. She said that a lot of families either don’t have anyone they can reach out to, or don’t know where to get help.

“We want to provide all the resources available to help them learn how to continue living after losing someone to suicide,” Ramette said.

One person the organization helps is Lissette Roca, a resident of The Colony who lost her boyfriend on Feb. 1, 2016. Like many other survivors who attend meetings, Roca said his death was completely unexpected.

“Nobody would have ever considered he was depressed,” Roca said. “But [his coworkers] did say that the couple days before it happened, he did look down. And they said, it was so unlike him because he was always so happy and always in a good mood … I miss that.”

When her boyfriend passed away, Roca immediately started seeking out support groups and came across Touched By Suicide. Because she said she didn’t feel like she had many friends to talk to about the loss, attending these meetings helped Roca process her feelings.

“It makes me realize that I’m not alone in this,” Roca said. “There’s some comfort in knowing that someone feels the same exact way you do.”

She said that even if it is emotionally difficult sometimes to get out of the house and go to group, she feels rewarded when she does so.

“I always get something from someone’s story,” Roca said. “I don’t know anybody else that’s going through this, so if it weren’t for those support groups, I would be completely lost.”

According to the Center for Disease Control, suicide is one of the leading of causes of death for teens and young adults. Thanks to donations and grants, Touched By Suicide has been able to add a teen support group in addition to their three adult chapters. Group facilitator LaNelia Ramette said her goal is that the teen group will help increase mental health awareness in the community.

“It’s all up to us to be vigilant in trying to make sure that we can stop suicide from continuing,” Ramette said.