Ethan’s Purpose has set its 5th annual 5k race, Ethan’s Stampede, for 9 a.m. September 21 at North Pointe Elementary School in Hebron.
A local non-profit foundation, Ethan’s Purpose is dedicated to raising awareness about the importance of good mental health and suicide prevention.
It was founded in 2018 by Richard and Debbie Zegarra when they lost their 16-year-old son, Ethan Thomas, to suicide.
Their goal is to educate and support students and families who may be struggling with the same challenges that Ethan faced. Ethan was adopted and had been diagnosed with anxiety, depression and ADHD.
The race has been a successful fundraiser for the foundation and it is an opportunity for the community to come together and support a good cause.
“We have a lot of fun activities for the kids, prizes and music provided by a DJ. Some people run, many walk, bring kids in strollers and even bring their dogs. It’s just a good day to spend time together. Some who will be in attendance have attempted suicide and survived and others have family members or friends who have died by suicide. They come back every year and bring friends. They’ve overcome their challenges and they want to support other people who might be walking the same path,” Debbie Zegarra said.
The foundation was started with part of Ethan’s college fund and community donations. The initial focus was to provide small group counseling to students who would benefit from therapy but did not have access. After initially starting with one therapist in 3 schools in the Spring of 2018, the group counseling program has grown and expanded to 4 therapists providing group and individual therapy in 7 local schools. Over 285 students have been served to date.
After collaborating with local schools, the foundation quickly discovered that teachers and school staff lacked the necessary training to identify and assist students in crisis. In 2020, the foundation implemented a nationally recognized suicide prevention program called QPR which stands for Question, Persuade and Refer – the 3 steps anyone can learn to help save a life from suicide.
This program is presented in schools to teachers/staff to train them to recognize the warning signs of suicidal behavior, how to offer hope and obtain help for a student in crisis. Ethan’s Purpose has successfully trained over 335 teachers, faculty/administration and community members in QPR to date.
This past school year, the foundation launched a new educational program geared directly towards students called Ethan’s Challenge.
Presented during school hours, this program addresses mental wellness awareness, suicide prevention, the warning signs of suicidal behavior and where/how to obtain help for students or their friends.
With Ethan’s Challenge over 4,000 students in 4 schools have been reached with more presentations scheduled at schools in the next school year.
“We are very proud of the successful programs we have implemented and the positive impact the foundation has had in our community. We continue to find new ways to achieve and expand our mission and will have much more exciting news to share in the coming months,” Zegarra said.
