Concert aids teen suicide prevention group

If the Options Program had been around when he was a teenager, Bill Scarber figures he would have recognized his depression a lot sooner and gotten help.

As it is, Scarber now spends his days educating teachers, staff, students and parents about the signs and symptoms of depression and suicide prevention for Mental Health America of Arizona in the hope that Valley teens don't go through what he did.

"I thought I was just having horrible days. I nearly took my own life," he said. "If I had known what depression was, if we didn't have this secret conspiracy about mental health, I wouldn't have gone through two years of suffering."

Scarber and Mental Health America of Arizona want to raise awareness about Options, a free program offered to schools and community groups to identify depression and know how to get help, and raise money so more teens and families can be reached.

The group is sponsoring a concert Saturday at the Marquee Theatre in Tempe, featuring Vanity Tweak and other bands. Admission is free for students, $10 in advance and $12 at the door for others, and donations are accepted.

Options was launched six years ago after the suicide of a volunteer's son and has been retooled over the past year. Scarber and another counselor have held training sessions at schools in Anthem, Phoenix and Peoria and at Xavier College Preparatory.

More than 20 schools are promoting the concert, including Dobson High in Mesa, New School for the Arts in Scottsdale and Marcos de Niza High in Tempe.

"We have some really cool success stories this year," Scarber said.

The day after teachers went through a session, he said, a student attempted suicide. The staff had been trained to develop a safety plan for just such an event, including following up with the teen's closest friends.

"The teachers knew how to respond. They got the crisis team in there, got the kid to an emergency room," he said. "In talking with kids who were in that little clique, they found two more kids who were feeling suicidal."

Those students were referred to counseling.

Even though suicide is the third-leading cause of death for Arizona youth, and untreated depression is the leading cause of suicide, most schools don't have depression screening or suicide-prevention programs.

Hundreds of teens and families have participated in mental health screening at Tempe's alternative Compadre High School through TeenScreen, a Columbia University program. But the program has been pilloried by groups who see it as a gateway to medication.

Unlike TeenScreen, Options does not offer screening, but can refer families to school counselors or outside services.

"We say that when it comes to resolving depression, there are a lot of things you can do," Scarber said. "It comes back to stigma. Schools think talking about it is going to cause it. But like drugs, talking about it gets them aware so they know what to look for."

Free concert

What: Concert (free to students) to support Mental Health America of Arizona's Options, a free depression education and suicide prevention program for schools and community groups. Featuring local bands Vanity Tweak, Bionic Jive, Friday Night GunFight, CTS, Cousin Affect and special celebrity guests.

When: Doors open at 6 p.m. Saturday

Where: Marquee Theatre, 730 N. Mill Ave., Tempe

For more information: To learn more about Options (Offering Parents and Teens Information On Needless Suicide), schedule a training session with your school or community group or to donate, call Mental Health America of Arizona, (602) 994-4407 or go to www.mhaarizona.org.