TOLEDO, OH (WTOL) - (WTOL) - Award-winning speaker Kevin Hines is in northwest Ohio to speak at local schools about suicide, depression and overcoming mental illness.
Hines is a suicide-attempt survivor, who after years of struggling with bi-polar disorder decided to end his life by jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge.
More than 2,000 people have jumped off that bridge with the same intent, and most have succeed.
Hines regretted his decision immediately after making the jump. Luckily rescue personnel were close by and Hines was able to walk away with his life, but not before months of physical rehabilitation.
He has since been traveling the world speaking to groups about managing mental illness, and giving hope to those who are suffering what he went through.
Hines is being brought to northwest Ohio by Project AWARE Ohio, the Wood County Educational Service Center and the Wood County Suicide Prevention Coalition.
"When reviewing recent Wood County youth survey results, we noticed an increase in suicide ideation among seventh through eleventh-grade students, making our local rates higher than the state and national averages. We decided we needed to do something to address this topic," said Angela Patchen, manager of Project AWARE. "Mr. Hines' story is featured in the Youth Mental Health First Aid training we have been providing to schools, so it seemed like a natural fit."
Hines will be speaking at Otsego High School on October 2 at 7 p.m. and Northwood High School on October 4 at 6 p.m.
He will also be speaking at Perrysburg High School and Junior High students on October 5, as well as make daytime appearances at other local schools while he is in the area.
For more information on Kevin's story, visit here.
