Local Organizations and Collaborations

DOD/Military Partnerships

Collaboration with our military partners has grown exponentially. There is now a Joint Military Suicide Prevention Taskforce (JMSPTF), which facilitates cross-branch communication and collaboration.

• JMSPTF Chair – Stefany Garcia, Consolidated Primary Prevention Analyst, Integrated Primary Prevention Workforce – Hawai‘i Army National Guard

  • Phone: (808) 672-1465

  • Email: stefany.m.garcia.civ@army.mil 

• Co-Chair – Melody Bell, Outreach Coordinator, Cohen Veterans Clinic

  • Phone: (808) 509-7850

  • Email: mbell@cfs-hawaii.org 

• Sr. Advisor – Brent Oto, Alcohol & Drug Control Officer, ASAP, 9th MSC Army Reserves

  • Phone: (808) 438-1600 ext. 3197

  • Email: brent.k.oto.civ@army.mil

Below is information for suicide prevention activities in individual branches/services:

• Army

  • Website: https://home.army.mil/hawaii/index.php/garrison/dhr/asap/suicide-prevention-program

• Army National Guard – Suicide Prevention Program Manager

  • Phone: (808) 844-6453

  • Website: https://hawaiiguardohana.org/suicide-prevention-program.php 

• Army Reserves – Kay Morris, 9th MSC Suicide Prevention Program Manager/Office

  • Phone: (808) 438-1600 x3231

  • Email: katherine.m.morris28.civ@army.mil

• Air Force – Diane Heard, Suicide Prevention Program Manager

  • Phone: (808) 449-1603/1608

  • Email: latoya.heard@us.af.mil 

• Air National Guard – Ms. Yumi Panui, Director of Psychological Health 154 WG

  • Phone: (808) 286-0258

  • Email: yumi.panui@us.af.mil

• Marine Corps – C.A.R.R.E. Center (building 216)

  • Phone: (808) 257-7780/8803

• Navy – LT Leah Teglovic, Suicide Prevention Program Manager

  • Phone: (808) 474-0045

  • Email: leahteglovic@gmail.com

• Department of Veteran Affairs, Pacific Islands Healthcare System – Justin Fienhold, LCSW, CSAC, Suicide Prevention Coordinator
  
  Website: http://www.hawaii.va.gov/services/mentalhealth.asp
  Email: justin.fienhold@va.gov
  Phone: 433-3472
  
  

American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) – Hawaiʻi Chapter
Website: https://afsp.org/chapter/hawaii
Main contacts:

• Chapter co-chairs: 

  • Karen Ng – karenng.afsphi@gmail.com

  • Dennis Hida – dennishida.afsphi@gmail.com 

AFSP is the nation’s leading organization bringing together people across communities and backgrounds to understand and prevent suicide, and to help heal the pain it causes. A small group of board members and volunteers have established a formal Chapter in Hawai‘i. AFSP’s major activities include the Out of the Darkness Community Walks, International Survivors of Suicide Loss events, Hike for Hope, and other trainings and awareness activities to increase community knowledge and capacity around suicide prevention.

Request a presentation from AFSP here: https://afsp.wufoo.com/forms/qv35yb20o4v84q/

Trainings and Resources

• AFSP offers Talk Saves Lives: An Introduction to Suicide Prevention, the organization's flagship suicide prevention education program that covers the scope of this leading cause of death, what the research has found to be the warning signs and risk factors of suicide, and the strategies that prevent it. 

• It's Real: College Students and Mental Health is an AFSP produced film, designed to raise awareness about mental health issues commonly experienced by students, and is intended to be used as part of a school’s educational program to encourage help-seeking.
  
  By featuring real stories and experiences, It’s Real conveys that depression and other mental health conditions are real illnesses that can be managed through specific treatments and interventions. It encourages students to be mindful of the state of their mental health, to acknowledge and recognize when they are struggling, and to take steps to seek help.

• Caring Communities: Guidance for Supporting Survivors of Suicide Loss is a one-hour presentation, available in-person or virtually, designed to provide participants with information, resources, and practical guidance on how to support someone who has experienced a recent loss to suicide. The program is suitable for workplaces and community groups who want to learn how to build more supportive environments for survivors of suicide loss. 

• For grief/bereavement support, AFSP offers the Healing Conversations, a safe space for suicide loss survivors to speak openly and share their story with someone who understands firsthand the pain and complexity of suicide loss. Our trained volunteers listen without judgment, share from personal experience, and help individuals feel less alone. Everyone grieves differently, and whether a loss was recent or it’s been years, we’re here to help suicide loss survivors navigate their healing journey.

Hawai‘i State Department of Health (DOH)

DOH is the state-designated “lead agency” for suicide prevention activities. The following sections of DOH relate to mental health and/or suicide prevention:

• Emergency Medical Services and Injury Prevention System Branch – main resource for suicide prevention trainings & information, including poison prevention – http://health.hawaii.gov/injuryprevention/ 

  • Renee Yu – Suicide Prevention Coordinator, DOH EMS and Injury Prevention System Branch

    • zeruirenee.yu@doh.hawaii.gov

• Adult Mental Health Division – http://health.hawaii.gov/amhd/ 

• Child & Adolescent Mental Health Division - http://health.hawaii.gov/camhd/ 

Hawai‛i State Department of Education (DOE)

• http://www.hawaiipublicschools.org/Pages/Home.aspx

• Whole-child supports: http://www.hawaiipublicschools.org/TeachingAndLearning/StudentLearning/Supports/Pages/home.aspx 

Mental Health America of Hawai‘i (MHAH)

MHAH provides trainings, presentations, and resources for adults and youth. The organization also supports individuals and families around mental health issues, and participates in advocacy activities.

Contacts:
Website: http://mentalhealthhawaii.org/

Email: prevention@mentalhealthhawaii.org
Phone: (808) 521-1846

(808) 242-6461 (Maui Office) 

MHAH has a Finding Help Phone List, a compilation of agencies and programs that offer a comprehensive range of services (see Finding Help Guide, updated in July 2021).

Free, anonymous screenings are available to determine whether you are experiencing symptoms of a mental health condition at https://bit.ly/3yGjJdN. For crisis resources and support, check out Noshamegethelp.org.

For youth, MHAH offers the Youth Suicide & Bullying Prevention Training (YSBP), a two-hour evidence-informed curriculum for middle and high schoolers that meets the requirements for ACT 270. 

National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Hawai‘i

Offers education, advocacy, and support for persons with mental illness and their families. One of NAMI Hawaii’s primary focus areas is the support of families and caregivers of those living with mental illness. They offer a “Family-to-Family (F4F) Education” course for caregivers, as well as Family Support Groups. A variety of peer support groups are also offered in various locations.

• Phone: (808) 591-1297

• Website: www.namihawaii.org

University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, Department of Public Health Sciences

University of Hawai‘i John A. Burns School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry

Hawaii’s leader in research, service, and training on mental/behavioral health in Hawai‘i and the Pacific Region. The Department also co-houses the “Hawaii’s Caring Communities/Systems Initiatives (HCCI and HCSI) for Youth Suicide Prevention,” under the direction of Dr. Jeanelle Sugimoto-Matsuda (jsugimot@hawaii.edu), Dr. Deborah Goebert (goebertd@dop.hawaii.edu), and evaluator Dr. Tai-An Miao (taian@dop.hawaii.edu). 

• Department of Public Health Sciences – https://manoa.hawaii.edu/publichealth/

• Department of Psychiatry – http://blog.hawaii.edu/dop 

• HCSI Email– hcsi.team@gmail.com 

• A comprehensive description of the Department’s suicide prevention work can be found here: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5694974/pdf/hjmph7611_0310.pdf. 

Other Partner Organizations and Agencies

There are many groups, formal and informal, that are currently working in suicide prevention. The following list provides just a snapshot of pur partners across the state and beyond.