ARVIN, Calif. (KERO) — Following alleged bullying incidents and a student who took his own life back in August, Arvin High School is trying to make sure everyone is aware of the dangers of suicide.
Esports coach April Perez said that after playing on the team for four years, a student took his own life after graduation. Now the school is coming together to bring awareness to the cause through the SALT Walk.
"This is our second annual walk that we've organized," said Perez. "We started last year in memory of a team member that had taken his life."
SALT stands for "Save A Life Today" and that's what members of the community did on Monday, October 24th at Arvin High to raise awareness about suicide.
"Educating the community in suicide awareness and our youth, we've got to start there because during COVID, the rate of suicide in the general population went down except for our adolescents, and especially for our adolescents of color. So we got to reach our kids," said SALT President and Founder Ellen Eggbert. "Suicide is never just one reason. Bullying might have just been the icing on the cake, and we would like to say 'oh, it's bully, bully, bully,' and that could have been the last straw for somebody."
