GOSHEN – Orange County District Attorney David Hoovler, and Carl LoFaro from the Hudson Valley VA Health Care System, announced that the Orange County Coalition to Prevent Veteran Suicide, aided by over 500 Orange County businesses and organizations have distributed Veteran’s Administration anti-suicide materials throughout the county and surrounding areas. In November 2021, District Attorney Hoovler joined with the Hudson Valley VA Healthcare System to form an Orange County Veterans Suicide Prevention Coalition.
Suicide numbers in Orange County are alarmingly high, said Hoovler. Nationwide, about 17 veterans succumb to suicide every day. Veteran suicide rates are 50 percent higher than non-veteran suicide rates.
Over the last few months, the Orange County Coalition to Prevent Veteran Suicide has been visiting local stores, businesses, and organizations, in, around and near Orange County, to ask for their help in preventing veteran suicide in their communities. The response was nothing short of fantastic, said Hoovler. More than 500 stores, businesses and organizations are displaying Veteran Crisis Line resources in the form of cards, magnets, stickers, posters, coasters, pill organizers, hankies, bookmarks and stress balls to increase awareness and promote access to this important resource for veterans in crisis. The coalition also distributed over 3,000 gun locks, an option for veterans and others to use, should they decide to, to reduce access to the firearm for the veteran during a time of crisis. Research shows that barriers between a person with suicidal thoughts and the means to carry them out saves lives. In addition to gun locks, over 15,000 veteran crisis line awareness resources were distributed before this Independence Day weekend to the public.
