LAWTON, Okla_A soldier
turned investment banker is spending his entire two week vacation riding across
country to spread awareness about his military suicide outreach organization
"Stop Soldier Suicide." He's halfway through his ride and he's making
an impact everywhere he goes.
This summer was
the worst on record for military suicides and with the number up to 211 by the
end of August this tragic trend seems to be continuing.
They serve our
country selflessly and put themselves in harms way overseas. Then once back
home our military men and woman try go get their lives back to normal. But it's
not easy just ask Brian Kinsella.
"When I
was remembering all of the things that I saw over my five years in the military
I knew that when I transitioned out I wanted to start an organization that
basically connected people to free, civilian mental health care."
Kinsella
transitioned successfully, he said his organization doesn't restrict itself to
military installations.
"While a
lot of people on active duty may reach out to us and seek help we also realize
there are a lot of veterans in individual communities and by having a presence
in the community you not only help people who are on active duty but also
people who are on veteran status and you can better build a network to get
everyone the help they need."
Kinsella said
he named his organization with a purpose, he wants the word and topic of
suicide out there.
"You
quickly saw how if people didn't feel comfortable coming forward to people in
leadership positions that they may keep it inside and it may eventually lead to
military suicide."
With the
support of his organization Brian will continue to ride across the U.S. all the
while never forgetting.
"The goal
of ‘Ride For Life' is to spread the word about the mission of Stop Soldier
Suicide so that people who need help know that there's a place that they can
get it."
Kinsella will
end his tour next week in New York
City.
For more information about Kinsella and Stop Soldier Suicide visit StopSoldierSuicide.org
or check out their page on Facebook.
