Solace House expanding services to NJ

We had a busy "two working days till Monday" this past weekend.

One of the most impactful events was in Asbury Park.

Jodi and I met our friend Pat McGowan and his wife Trisha for a walk with Solace House.

Solace House is a New York-based suicide prevention charity looking to expand to NJ. The goal of the organization is to empower people to speak about their challenges and get help from qualified professionals who can walk those in distress to a better place. ]

Here's an excerpt from the website:

"We believe that suicide is preventable and strive to make our services easily accessible and barrier-free. We seek to break down the stigma of mental health and suicide by creating an environment where people are comfortable seeking help for themselves, talking about their thoughts and feelings, and supporting and seeking help for suicidal loved ones."

Suicide is the 12th leading cause of death in the United States.

In New Jersey, there are twice as many suicides as homicides. The trend has been steadily over two decades between 2000 and 2020.

Although there has been a slight drop in New Jersey suicides in the past two years, the need to help so many struggling with mental health issues is still enormous.

Windfarm projects proposed for NJ coast — and what they might look like

These are the wind energy projects approved for and planned for the ocean off the coasts of New Jersey and New York. While the projects have the support of officials who say they will stimulate the local economy and create renewable energy to power millions of homes, many coastal residents have raised concerns about how the projects will impact tourism and the environment.

The gallery includes competing photosimulations — those on file with the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and those recently commissioned by a group opposed to the wind farm development.

Gallery Credit: New Jersey 101.5

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The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Bill Spadea. Any opinions expressed are Bill's own. Bill Spadea is on the air weekdays from 6 to 10 a.m., talkin’ Jersey, taking your calls at 1-800-283-1015.

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