WINNEMUCCA - A man walking along Interstate 80 across northern Nevada pushing a cart that looks a lot like a baby carriage catches the attention of many.
People participating in walks and runs to raise money and awareness for many causes are a common sight in communities, but a solitary walker like Darick Reed, who is walking from Missoula, Mont., to the California coast at Santa Barbara (a distance of 1,264 miles), is unusual.
Reed's personal cause is suicide prevention, and to him it's very personal. After suffering from depression for a decade, Reed attempted suicide just over a year ago.
He is grateful to have survived, and says, "I have found my recovery through reaching out, and by making it my personal mission to overcome fear in my life. I want to make this walk a movement that inspires thousands of people to find hope, to show them how strong they really are, and that they are not alone."
Suicide claims 38,000 lives a year just in the United States, one every 14 minutes. It's the tenth leading cause of death.
When Reed recovered from his suicide attempt, he participated in one of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention's "Out of Darkness" walks. Those walks raise funds and awareness for the foundation's research and education programs to prevent suicide and save lives, and provide comfort and assistance to those who have lost a loved one to suicide.
The foundation holds community walks, campus walks, and an annual national event - an overnight walk from dusk to dawn that rotates cities every year. The overnight walk is a challenge, varying from 16 to 18 miles.
Reed said he works with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and as he passes through communities on his walk, he talks to newspapers, TV and radio stations, and he keeps up with his blog, "Me Against Fear."
Reed said many people are reacting to his efforts, "A lot of people right now are reaching out to me; it's what gets me through."
He added, "Reaching out to try and help others is what changed my life."
Reed researched the best route to take for his walk, saying he wanted to go west from Montana through California. "I wanted to walk to the ocean."
Another walker, Steven Milhouse, walked to raise awareness of homelessness in 2011 and Reed said he was inspired by that.
"He's been my mentor," said Reed, adding that when he gets down he calls Millhouse and gets the encouragement he needs to keep going.
Firefighters in northern Nevada got involved after some firefighters who were in Jackpot saw him walking through their area and stopped to talk to him. They were supportive of Reed's walk and called
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firefighters in other communities he would be passing through to get them involved in helping Reed as well. They've helped put him in touch with media representatives in each community.
Reed said he can walk about 30 miles a day, depending on weather and the incline. He worked to raise funding before he left and continues to raise funds on-line. Even though he sleeps in a tent most nights, and doesn't have motor fuel costs, he said a walk like this does take some funding. There's the cost of shoes for instance, since a pair lasts about 200 miles, and it takes a fair amount of food to keep walking 30 miles a day.
His adventures have included being stuck in a forest fire, walking through all kinds of weather, and becoming used to the sound of wolves while walking through Montana and Idaho. In northern Nevada, those sounds changed to the nighttime calls of coyotes, as well as their daytime presence. "I'm getting pretty used to the sight of coyotes," he commented. The thing that has left the most lasting mark on him so far has been meeting so many kind people, both in person and on-line. He talks to supporters on Facebook often, and calls them "My family from afar." Spending many hundreds of hours alone, walking, has helped him come to know himself and to appreciate a second chance to love life.
"The most important thing to me is 'breaking the silence', the taboo surrounding suicide," said Reed. After his walk to raise awareness, he hopes to go back to Montana to work, and says he hopes to find a job in the non-profit sector, perhaps with mental health. He said he's had significant interest from people in the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, and would love to work with them. He would also like to complete college. "Ihave more direction now, more purpose; I want to help people." Reed hopes his walk, and the publicity surrounding it, "will show anyone who is struggling like I was that there is always hope, and that they are not alone."
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