Julio

This is Julio. Julio is spending a year in Bozeman as a Americorp Vista volunteer with Montana Mental Health. He has a degree in psychology and his focus is suicide prevention. His determination to help prevent suicides came after his own personal experience with loss - that of his cousin. Prior to moving to Bozeman, Julio lived in San Francisco and worked with the suicide hotline there, and he also met a suicide survivor "featured" in the controversial film, The Bridge, documenting suicides from the Golden Gate Bridge. Part of Julio's work as a Vista volunteer includes writing grants for various suicide prevention projects. One of these project proposals is to get the 272-TALK number on billboards around the state, particularly in rural areas. Julio has also spent time passing out fliers and gun locks on the MSU campus since guns are often used in suicides in Montana. One thing he mentioned tonight really stuck out in my mind. He said that there's really only one thing we have control over in our lives: the decisions we make. We can choose to get help when we need it and we can choose to live, even if our circumstances make it difficult.