MOLINE- A Moline woman who has had four suicides in her extended family, including her father, is launching a support group for those left behind.
Gaelane Rosinski's aunt and uncle killed themselves before she was born.
"The first time I ever heard the word suicide, I was just a little girl. My aunt committed suicide when my mom was only 8 years old and her brother was lost to suicide, I think when he was in his late 20's. Years later, his great grandson killed himself," she said.
But, suicide became intensely personal in 1975, when Gae's father, Keith Lane, shot himself to death.
"I was 25, and dad was only 52. He was a deputy sheriff for Rock Island County, and he used his own service weapon. He didn't see any reason for living. He had gone through quite a few heartbreaks in the last few months before he passed away," she said.
"I can hear the words, the same words after all this time. Call your mother at work. Keith just shot himself. I hear it over and over again," she said.
Last year she organized a benefit craft show and raised money to benefit mental health research and suicide prevention.
This year, she has started a new support group for friends and family members of those who have taken their own lives.
It will meet starting August 7th at Community of Christ Church in Moline.
"So that they can know there are others who are suffering like them. So many times, survivors of loss will keep it all inside, and sometimes, they will become a suicide loss, too. And, we don't want that to happen," she said.
For more information, call 309-207-5752
