NewPage prevention coordinator briefs Glendale Heights on suicide risk and local resources

Hannah Ewalt, prevention and outreach coordinator at NewPage and a Glendale Heights resident, told the Village of Glendale Heights board on Sept. 3 that suicide remains a major public-health issue and described local resources available to residents.

“Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the United States,” Ewalt said, citing statistics from the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and county youth-survey data. She told trustees that, in recent DuPage County survey results, “22 percent of 8th graders felt sad or hopeless almost every single day, and 7 percent of 10th graders … seriously considered attempting suicide,” stressing that the patterns warrant attention from families, schools and local providers.

Ewalt reviewed common warning signs for youth and adults — talk of planning or feeling trapped, major changes in behavior, increased substance use, or sudden withdrawal — and urged residents to treat patterns of concerning behavior seriously. She highlighted local supports, including two police social workers partnered with the Glendale Heights Police Department who can provide referrals, short-term counseling and crisis intervention, and recommended the DuPage County Crisis Recovery Center as an around-the-clock resource for assessment and mobile response.

Ewalt also noted the federal 988 suicide and crisis lifeline and said NewPage will provide handouts and digital copies of resource lists for the village. “If you’re concerned, take the steps to get someone help,” she said, offering to connect residents and staff with social workers and community programs.

The board received the materials and Ewalt said she would provide digital copies for distribution. The presentation closed with an invitation for residents to use local resources and county supports; Ewalt left handouts on the back table.