Colorado attorney general visits Pueblo releases suicide prevention plan

Tyler Mahoney was just 18 when he took his own life.

“There were no signs. He was such a happy kid,” said Tyler Mahoney’s mom, Sherri. That was in 2012. Now , Sherri Mahoney is a voice for people whose lives are touched by suicide. “We need to bring these kids their self-worth back,” Mahoney said. She’s joining Colorado Attorney General Cynthia Coffman in pushing two new youth suicide prevention initiatives. “We need folks not to feel shame or fear about talking about it,” Coffman said. The first would fund a school program called “Sources of Strength,” which uses social media to prevent suicide by stopping bullying.

Coffman wants students to use social media as a tool rather than a way to harass each other.

“If we can get kids and adults talking about the issues and the problems that they’re dealing with, they’re far less apt to attempt to take their own lives,” Coffman said. The other initiative would fund a study by the attorney general’s office, analyzing trends and patterns of youth suicide. “I’ve heard a lot of talk and I really haven’t seen any success rates, so I’m hoping these work,” Mahoney said. Mahoney is happy to finally see some action, even though it’s too late for her family.