The Minnesota Department of Health and Department of Agriculture are teaming up to offer suicide prevention training for rural faith leaders.
The organizations have announced two conferences later this month – September 17 in Bemidji and September 29th in Mankato – with the goal of increasing suicide prevention.
The conferences aim to grow faith leaders’ understanding of suicide and provide resources to help those leaders prevent suicide in their community.
And the two conferences come at a fitting time for farmers, as they enter a busy stretch of the season.They are working long hours in the field and are constantly worrying about their yields. It can be stressful, and sometimes too much.
“Thoughts of suicide are spinning in their heads,” said Glen Bloomstrom, a retired Army chaplain and suicide prevention trainer with LivingWorks Education.
He said farmers are dying by suicide in staggering numbers, largely due to financial stress.
Many have thoughts of “I don’t belong. I am a burden. I’d be worth more dead than alive,” Bloomstrom said.
Training clergy to be able to help farmers going through tough times is the goal of two workshops scheduled later this month.
“We don’t want to offend people by asking them anymore than how are you and I’m fine,” he said.
Minnesota farmers are often characterized as being stoic and self-reliant, sometimes making it tough for them to reach out for help when facing difficult times.
“There is a reluctance to admit to when life just becomes too much,” said Meg Monihan, a farmer and advisor for the Minnesota Department of Agriculture.
Tthere are also some misconceptions about suicide, she said.
“When someone is struggling, talking about suicide does not plant the idea in their head. It can actually help them to know you are willing to talk about it, and create a safe opportunity to share their thoughts,” she said.
Rural communities tend to be close-knit and suicides touch many people when they happen.
“Faith often plays a big role in the lives of farm families,” said Agriculture Commissioner Thom Peterson. “So pastors and lay leaders can play a critical role in preventing these deaths.”
The conference is free but pre-registration is required. Anyone interested should call 218-308-2148 for the Bemidji conference on September 17,2022 and 507-344-2747 for the Mankato conference on September 29, 2022.