Metro Area LOSS Team Update

In October our group welcomed Larry Duncan, Program Director at Catholic Charities’ Campus for Hope. Larry spoke to our group about substance use disorders and gave us tips on how we can be supportive to survivors when they or a loved one is struggling with addiction. We understand that there are often connections between mental illness, substance abuse, and suicide. We also discussed local resources and services for both youth and adults.

The Metro Area LOSS Team  welcomed a new clinician and a survivor  to our team this month, bringing our active team member count to 18. With several applications out, I hope to reach our goal of 20 team members by the beginning of 2017. If you have an interest in becoming a volunteer clinician or survivor, please contact Jill Hamilton at jhamilton@thekimfoundation.org, or (402)891-6998.

Our 24/7 LOSS phone is to be used only by sheriffs, chaplains, and any other first responders responding to a suicide call. It is not a suicide prevention hotline. If you or someone you know is having suicidal thoughts, please call 1(800)273-TALK (8255) or 911, if it is an emergency. If you or someone you know has recently lost someone to suicide and would like to schedule a meeting with the on-call LOSS team, please contact The Kim Foundation at (402)891-6911.

Jill Hamilton, Project Coordinator, The Kim Foundation

Jill Hamilton has been the Project Coordinator at The Kim Foundation since 2014. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in journalism and public relations from The University of Nebraska at Omaha in 2009. Since working at the foundation, she has become an active member of the Nebraska State Suicide Prevention Coalition, Nebraska LOSS Advisory Committee, The Omaha Metro Hoarding Taskforce, The Early Childhood Mental Health Coalition, Nebraska State Conference Planning Committee, is Chair of the Nebraska LOSS Teams Conference Planning Committee, and serves as the Outreach Coordinator for the Metro Area LOSS Team.