The nation's mental health crisis can become increasingly fatal as firearms become more accessible, data shows. Michigan's new gun safety laws and local health care-led initiatives are intended to help before that statistic hits Kalamazoo County.
Rhonda Ethridge doesn’t remember rushing to her son after she received the call.
But she remembers “what he looked like. I remember they had a plastic thing in his mouth while they were trying to resuscitate him. I remember moving his head and slob and blood - 'cause he must have bit his tongue - came out his mouth. I remember feeling how spongy his hair felt. I remember what he had on.”
It’s taken her years to get this comfortable with talking about a public health crisis that’s kept so hush– suicide.
Her son Anthony “Boo” Hensley died by suicide in 2010, two months before turning 18.
This story is part of the Mental Wellness Project, a solutions-oriented journalism initiative covering mental health issues in southwest Michigan, created by the Southwest Michigan Journalism Collaborative. SWMJC is a group of 12 regional organizations dedicated to strengthening local journalism. For more info visit swmichjournalism.com.