Colorado Springs teen nationally recognized for work in suicide prevention

Inspired by personal experience, a Colorado Springs teen has created an organization working to prevent suicide.

Now she’s being honored for her work with Project Reasons, an organization she and other students created together.

As a graduate from Pine Creek High School, Hannah Mitchell has always been a student with a plan.

“The one thing that I’ve always tried to get across is that I just want to have an open conversation about suicide and mental health, especially for teens,” she said.

Mitchell started that conversation with an art show with pieces created by students.

It’s a depiction of mental health and suicide through their eyes and it raised more than $4,000. For Mitchell, her work with the organization is personal.

“My sophomore year of high school I lost my best friend Noah to suicide. During that time, it was really before we had this epidemic in our community,” she said.

At first she felt heartbroken, but the pain turned into passion and hard work.

And it’s earned her national recognition by winning the Prudential Spirit of Community award.

Her feelings towards the medal and certificate she received in Washington D.C. last month is hard for Mitchell to put into words because it’s always been about putting others before herself, she says.

“I guess, my moment of spotlight you could say which I feel so weird saying because this has never been about me, ever, so to have it be about me is why I stumble on the question,” Mitchell said.

Despite moving to Arizona for college in the next few months, her volunteer work will continue, as she hopes to find support the causes she believes in.

“If everyone in our community does a little to make a difference, in any thing they believe in, it can make a world of a difference,” Mitchell said.

The money the art show raised goes toward Project Reasons to help them create a mobile app and video series, as well as purchase art supplies for a local mental health center.