Samaritans Of New York Inc

Programs: Nyc's completely confidential 24-hour suicide hotline provides a safe alternative to clinical services for the underserved and those resistant to seeking help, making it a popular choice for people in distress who are seeking emotional support. In 2017, the hotline responded to 103,660 contacts, 75,693 of them calls from people in crisis, those concerned about someone else or those seeking the keys to effective suicide prevention. In 2017, this free hotline service was staffed by 105 volunteers from nyc's culturally diverse communities who donated close to 30,000 hours in support of our programs, about 250 hours of service per volunteer (equivalent to one-and-a-half months of full time work each, totaling an estimated 750,000 in free donated labor).

nyc's oldest suicide prevention education program has been addressing the challenges faced by nyc health providers working with at-risk populations in academic, community and government settings for over 32 years. In 2017, with funding from nyc council and nys legislature, samaritans trained 2,218 students, parents,guidance counselors, social workers, psychologists and others working in 652 nyc schools and 124 community/government agencises including: nyc doe (1. 2 million students in 1,600 schools), ahrc, big brothers/big sisters, bronx works, chidren's aid society, chinese-american planning council, grand street settlement, helping hands for the disabled, legal services, the jewish board, new york presbyterian, nypd, puerto rican family institute, veterans adm hospital, visiting nurse service and others.

samaritans establshed the first "suicide survivor" support groups in nyc over 30 years ago, providing ongoing emotional support and a safe and confidential environment for those who have lost a loved one to suicide. Those served are not only grieving the loss of someone close to them but must also deal with the stigma, sterotypes, myths and misconceptions many people have about suicide, while attempting to navigate thieir own path to healing. Samaritans twice-monthly meetings had 354 attendees in 2017, 111 of them attending safe place for the first time.