Local military spouse pushes for National Resilience Day after losing husband to suicide
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- A Colorado Springs military wife is pushing for March 4th to be officially declared as a National Day of Resilience after her husband took his own life.
Kristen Christy, who was later named 2018 Air Force Spouse of the Year, lost her husband in 2008 after he returned from a deployment to Baghdad.
She said his death tore her family apart. Her oldest son has been missing now for five years after going through the trauma of losing his father to suicide.
Christy knows her family isn't the only one dealing with this type of loss in El Paso County, so she's trying to raise awareness and let others know they are not alone. Now, she wants March 4th to be designated as a National Day of Resilience. She hopes that those who are struggling can find the strength to reach out.
"There is no shame in asking for help, it not only helps them but it helps their family and their community," Christy said. "I talk about the aftermath and how it just decimated our family, and we don't want any other family to go through that."
Christy now travels the world (in pre-COVID times) to share her message of hope and positivity, with the goal of bringing people together and helping end the pain caused by suicide.
"I want to be their emotional support human, if you will," Christy said. "Just to come alongside them and help people just spread that light. We all have it within us, HOPE [stands for] Help One Person Every day."
Christy also is a big believer in silver linings. She had a stroke when she was 15, making her hair grow in silver around her face -- a literal silver lining.
"We may not know what it is immediately, or even a week later, or two weeks later, decades later, but have that faith that there is a silver lining, and there is something to be learned to either help spread the word and the awareness for other people," Christy said of adversity.
Christy explained National Resilience Day is not just for active duty and veterans, it's for anyone who is struggling and could use a reminder to push on.
"If we ever as a country needed a resilience day, it's this year with everything that has gone on," Christy said. "We're all survivors of something, lost jobs, broken hearts, death, illness, and we survive every day."
She chose March 4th because it holds the perfect message for what she's trying to get across: March Forth and Conquer.
For more information on her push to declare March 4th at National Resilience Day, click here.
Click here for resources for veterans who may be struggling with suicidal thoughts.
