Bingo Night blazed a trail for the Lake Eufaula Out of Darkness Walk on June 12. Many patrons and volunteers came out to help raise money for the walk set for September 20. All the proceeds of the fundraiser benefitted the annual walk to bring awareness to suicide and its prevention.
Organizer Sharina Little knows too well the pain of losing loved ones to suicide because she has lost her uncle, five former classmates/ friends and her nephew to suicide just days before his 19th birthday which changed her family forever.
“I have seen enough heartbreak from this deadly darkness, but when suicide got upclose and personal in October of 2018 by taking my nephew Brayden, we were devastated,” Little said. “My middle child Jess and her cousin Brayden were born only four days apart and had always been close. So when Brayden killed himself his freshman year of college we were at a total loss of how this could have happened. Living with the knowledge that this could have been preventable rips my heart out. We will never know who Brayden would have become as a man, a husband or even a father. I feel like our entire family got robbed that day because it could have been prevented. Yet somehow this mental health darkness convinced him that taking his life was the only answer. The crazy part is that Brayden was super smart, loved technology and gaming. He was such a polite, young man who did track and graduated with honors just months before he made the decision to end it all. Then we were left with nothing but questions. Why did this happen? What could I have said or done to stop this tragedy? How can I help anyone else who is fighting this darkness? That’s why we started doing the awareness walk. We needed to help others see their potential and we needed to stand behind other families that had experienced this same tragedy.
“We have to do better with mental health. Look at all the recent lives lost to it in our communities. It’s worse than ever before and it’s taking lives and shredding families. So we have to shed a light on this sore subject and let people know there is hope and we will help them walk out of this darkness. Our suicide awareness committee consists of my husband Chris Little and myself, along with Lew Forrest, Cheryl Campbell, Cindee Etris and Lori Powell. Of course we also appreciate all the VFW auxiliary ladies, Livy Shackelford and Olivia Burrus who also volunteered their time for this great cause.”
During the Bingo Night, patrons bought cards to play 20 games for all sorts of goodie bags, baskets and prizes from businesses and individuals who helped fund the cause. Several patrons walked out with prizes and full bellies of Frito chili pies and desserts. However, the largest prizes were won by three individuals. Melina Goatcher won a Charbroil Gas Grill donated by Cindy Standridge, valued at $200. A McAlester player won a Bighorn Ranch Firepit with a cooking grate donated Guild Mortgage, valued at $300. The final grand prize of two concert tickets, dinner for two and a night’s stay at the River Spirit Casino & Resort, valued at $500 was won by LaDonna Rhodes.
Raffle tickets were sold on a handmade flag rag quilt by Burrus, which will also be raffled off on June 26 at 4 p.m. when organizers will go live on their The Lakeside Gypsy Facebook page and will draw the lucky winner. All proceeds will go to the Lake Eufaula Out of the Darkness Walk scheduled for Sept. 20 at the South Pavilion on Lake Eufaula.
“We made $2,708 which is up from last year and we are about $6,000 away from our goal. For the walk itself this year we have the band Blue Mentality performing, plus several resource tables and our special guest will be Michael Coon who lost his son to suicide. We hope many other families affected by this kind of tragedy will come and find the support that they need.
“We are still looking for a food truck and for teams to walk. I would love to see more small businesses join the BFF (Bright Future Family) team by donating $100. All BFF team members will have their name on a banner at the walk. We also need one or two sponsors to donate water and set up along the walking path to keep our walkers highly hydrated. We know it takes a village to bring awareness to suicide but we also know if it saves just one family from this kind of heartbreak it’s all worth it.”
Follow Lake Eufaula Out of Darkness on their Facebook page and if interested in becoming a sponsor contact Sharina Little at 580-334-0852 or stop by The Lakeside Gypsy located at 418956 Texanna Rd.
