Say it with flowers: Message serves as 'beacon for those who are struggling' in Rockford
ROCKFORD — A flower bed planted in the city’s Churchill’s Grove neighborhood is designed to serve as an artistic message of hope for individuals experiencing a mental health crisis.
Flowers that spell out "988", the newly established national Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, can be viewed in a 12-by-4 foot display on the southwest corner of Auburn and Cumberland streets.
“We want this flower bed to be a beacon for those who are struggling and a conversation starter for everyone else,” Friends of Veterans Memorial Circle co-chair Helen Karakoudas Redfern said in a news release.
Friends of Veterans Memorial Circle is a volunteer group that has been planting flowers in and around the roundabout at North Main & Auburn streets.
More news: Volunteers work to make Veterans Memorial Circle a fitting tribute
The 988 flower bed was designed and planted by Megan Pease, of Rockford, a biology professor at Rock Valley College and volunteer with Friends of Veterans Memorial Circle.
Pease and her husband, Brian Biehl, fit the plot with a tilted frame they built themselves and planted seven different types of flowers to make their message readable throughout the summer and into fall.
The three-digit number 988 is spelled out in white begonias.
“Both of us were really excited about the idea that there will be this kind of fast hotline with a number that would be easy to remember,” Pease said. “I think we’re really realizing that we need to get people connected with the correct resources and get them connected as quickly as possible. Now, we’ve got 988, so that when you’re in that moment of crisis, you know who to call and start getting connected to the resources and emergency care.”
The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline provides free and confidential emotional support to people in suicidal crisis or emotional distress 24 hours a day, 7 days a week across the U.S.
The Lifeline is comprised of a national network of over 200 local crisis centers, which combine custom local care and resources with national standards and best practices.
The 988 flower bed is especially meaningful to U.S. Army veteran Alisa Funnell, of Rockford, who lost her 17-year-old son to suicide in 2006.
“I’ve been battling with suicide since I can’t even remember how long it has been,” Funnell said. “So, it gives hope and is a reminder that people are listening."
Funnell credits people who listened to her in recent years for helping to save her life.
"If it wasn’t for Stepping Stones (Mental health services organization) stepping in during the last five years," Funnell said, "I wouldn’t be here today.”
Ken DeCoster: kdecoster@rrstar.com; @DeCosterKen
This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: Rockford flower bed serves as 'a beacon for those who are struggling'
