For Immediate Release Contact: Abbe Sparks @ 224.567.9166
October 25, 2010 abbe@abbesparksmediarelations.com
SAVING LIVES NATIONAL TOUR KICKS-OFF IN ROCHESTER NOVEMBER 2nd AT REEL MIND FILM SERIES
Susan Blauner, Award-Winning Suicide Prevention Specialist and Author of
How I Stayed Alive When My Brain Was Trying To Kill Me… To Speak at Several Area Venues
Rochester, October 25, 2010 – Susan Rose Blauner, award-winning Suicide Prevention Specialist and Author of How I Stayed Alive When My Brain Was Trying To Kill Me: One Person’s Guide to Suicide Prevention, William Morrow & Co./Quill Paperbacks, is the featured guest speaker at the Reel Mind Film Series’ special 30th Anniversary screening of the Academy Award-winning film Ordinary People on Nov. 2, 7 pm at the Cinema Theatre, 957 Clinton Avenue. Blauner’s appearance at the Reel Mind series will kick off her national SAVING LIVES TOUR (SAVING LIVES); Ms. Blauner will also speak at the Rochester Public Library the following day beginning at noon in the Gleason Auditorium.
SAVING LIVES is a suicide prevention awareness tour traveling throughout North America to educate and empower anyone whose life has been touched by suicide. A noted speaker at VA Medical Centers, universities, psychiatric facilities, and national conferences, Blauner has saved the lives of hundreds of people throughout the world.
“Reel Mind is absolutely thrilled to be bringing Susan to town,” said series co-directors Ruth Cowing & Herb Katz. “The topic of suicide has been one of fear, shame and hidden isolation for much too long. There is hope for the future, and if anyone embodies that sense of hope, it is Susan. She is one-of-a-kind, as is the quietly remarkable film Ordinary People that we will be pairing her with that evening.”
Kicking-off her SAVING LIVES Tour in Rochester, Blauner will use her area appearances to raise awareness around suicide prevention, share her personal struggle with mental illness, and discuss prevention techniques from her invaluable book How I Stayed Alive…, which will be available for signing at each event. A portion of the proceeds of all books sold will go to The University of Rochester Center for the Study and Prevention of Suicide. How I Stayed Alive…is also available in retail outlets nationwide and at Amazon.com.
Endorsed by all the major national suicide prevention organizations in the United States including The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, the book How I Stayed Alive… is used by psychiatric professionals in the therapeutic setting; suicidal thinkers as a life-saving resource; academia as classroom text; and for crisis line training.
“With suicide so prevalent nationwide — affecting all demographics, from students to professional athletes to veterans — I felt a need to return to the road and empower as many people as possible,” says Blauner, who survived 18 years of suicidal ideation, three suicide attempts, and four psychiatric hospitalizations. She will focus on hope, opportunity, and willingness, or HOW. “It’s vital to generate and hold on to hope while taking advantage of opportunities for help and healing,” she says, “Both require the willingness to let go of suicide as an option. It’s a slow process.”
“Suicide is preventable,” she adds. “Family members and friends can learn the warning signs and supportive tools. Suicidal thinkers can find and use resources. The trick is willingness … on everyone’s part.”
First Stop Rochester — In conjunction with the screening of Ordinary People, Blauner will be on hand for a post-screening discussion, along with Dr. Sandra Mitzner, Medical Director of St. Joseph’s Villa. On November 3rd from noon – 2pm, Blauner will be presenting at the Rochester Central Library. (Full schedule below)
Currently, the SAVING LIVES TOUR plans to stop in cities located in New York, Illinois, Michigan, Georgia, Florida, Colorado, Washington, Massachusetts, California and Ontario, Canada.
For more information on booking a visit from the SAVING LIVES TOUR or to request an interview with Susan Blauner, CONTACT: Abbe Sparks, 224.567.9166 or abbe@abbesparksmediarelations.com .
For more information about the Reel Mind Film Series, CONTACT: Ruth Cowing, Co-Director, 585.729.1498 or cowingcreek@gmail.com.
SCHEDULE OF APPEARANCES
Tues. Nov. 2 @ 7 pm: Reel Mind screening of Ordinary People & post-film discussion with Sue Blauner, Cinema Theatre, 957 S. Clinton
Wed. Nov. 3: @ 12-1 pm: Presentation by Sue Blauner at the Rochester Central Library, Gleason Auditorium, 115 South Avenue
Wed. Nov. 3: @ 1 pm: Book signing at Library
Wed. Nov. 3: @ 2-4 pm: Screening of Ordinary People at Library
The Reel Mind Film Series features films and performances about mental illness, addiction and brain disorders. The series’ goal is to address the social stigma of mental illness while providing a message of hope that recovery is possible. The series, founded in 2009, is coordinated by a collaborative of mental health agencies and is co-directed by Herb Katz and Ruth Cowing, with the help of medical advisor Dr. Larry Guttmacher, Clinical Director of Rochester Psychiatric Center. Sponsors include: Excellus BlueCross BlueShield, Marcia & Gary Stern, the Mental Health Association of Rochester, National Alliance on Mental Illness-Rochester, Compeer Rochester, Creative Wellness Coalition, DePaul, East House, HCR-Home Care of Rochester, Rochester Rehabilitation Center, CARES, John Delehanty, Jewish Family Service, Bernice Skirboll and the University of Rochester Cluster of Human Values. In-kind support is provided by Craig Autometrics, DeBergerac Productions. the Jewish Film Festival, New Unto Others Consignment Shop and the Spiritus Christi Mental Health Center. The Reel Mind Film Series is also supported by funds from the Arts & Cultural Council of Greater Rochester, the New York State Council on the Arts, and the New York State Legislature.
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