Jacobs’ Conzelman wants to make most of final season
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MONDAY, JUNE 3, 2013
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The only daily newspaper published in McHenry Co.
Sports, B1
Andrew Shaw
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BLACKHAWKS • SPORTS, B1
ON THE RECORD WITH... • LOCAL, A3
Musick: Red-hot Hawks make latest win look easy
Michele Aavang talks farming, politics
CL church severs ties with Scouts
MENTAL HEALTH STIGMA: A SPECIAL REPORT
IT’S VERY REAL
National decision to allow gay members cited as reason By JOSEPH BUSTOS jbustos@shawmedia.com
Kyle Grillot – kgrillot@shawmedia.com
Bill Hartmann of McHenry holds a sign for participants – including Trish Neal (third from left) April 27 during the Out of Darkness Campus Walk in McHenry. Hartmann lost his son to suicide five years ago, and Neal lost her son in January. The walk is designed to prevent suicide and raise awareness of mental illness.
Area family not ashamed of son who took his life
Professionals say county’s suicide rate still too high By CHELSEA McDOUGALL cmcdougall@shawmedia.com
By CHELSEA McDOUGALL cmcdougall@shawmedia.com
I
n many ways, Ryan Neal was not the picture of someone with mental illness. A large group of tight-knit friends, parents still married after 34 years, an entertainer since the cradle. Photographs show Neal’s ear-to-ear smile. Pictures and memories are all his family have left of him, because inside, a different story unfolded. Neal had bipolar disorRyan Neal der, a diagnosis characterized by unusual shifts in moods from extreme highs to severe lows. In January, Neal took his own life. He was 28, and left behind grieving parents and friends
See NEAL, page A7
Fourteen minutes. That’s how often the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say someone in the United States commits suicide. And like many throughout the country, families in McHenry County often are left with immeasurable grief after loved ones take their own life. Despite a slew of services designed to curb suicides, the coun-
ty’s suicide rate remains too high, mental health professionals say. In 2012, 40 people committed suicide in McHenry County, outpacing the 37 in 2010, when the McHenry County Suicide Prevention Task Force was created. The task force – made up of mental health care professionals, survivors of suicide and a deputy coroner – is aimed at preventing suicides by promoting education and awareness.
See SUICIDE, page A7
• View a video of the Neal family sharing the story of their son, Ryan, at NWHerald. com. • To see all stories in this series, visit nwherald.com/ mental-health.
COMING TUESDAY • Solutions to mental illnesses start with early intervention.
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Charles Payseur Scoutmaster of Troop 550 on what the troop plans to do next
See BOY SCOUTS, page A7
ONLINE
SUICIDES IN McHENRY COUNTY 40 37 29 29
2008
CRYSTAL LAKE – A local Cub Scout pack and Boy Scout troop are looking for a new place to meet after the church that served as its meeting place for five years said it needed to sever ties. In a letter from the Rev. Brian Grady, pastor of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church, to the Blackhawk Area Council, Troop 550 was told the church is severing the parish’s association with Boy Scouts of America. The decision comes after the Boy Scouts of America voted last month to lift its ban on openly gay Scouts. There still is a ban on openly gay adults being a part of the Scouts’ organization. “The teachings of the Catholic Church are quite clear regarding the open practice
“Right now, we’re looking for a new home. I will not go to a religious organization.”
2012
2013*
Source: McHenry County Coroner’s Office
Locals offer to help Oklahoma Group organizer assisted victims of Joplin tornado LAWERENCE SYNETT lsynett@shawmedia.com CRYSTAL LAKE – Local volunteers are headed to Oklahoma for a week to help with cleanup efforts in areas hit worst by a tornado last month. More than 10 residents will make the trek Saturday to clean up debris left behind from the F5 tornado May 20 that killed at least 24 people, destroyed countless homes, and leveled an elementary school, killing seven children inside. “We are going down there to help out any way we can,” said Bernie Boyle, who is organizing the trip. “It’s hard to
“We are going down there to help out any way we can. ... We’ll do whatever is asked of us.” Bernie Boyle Trip organizer
See VOLUNTEERS, page A7
LOOKING FORWARD
SUNDAY
HAQUE TO PERFORM AT ARTS PARK Fareed Haque will perform at 2 p.m. Sunday at Lakeside Legacy Arts Park Listening Room, 401 Country Club Road, Crystal Lake. Haque will play “burning jazz” with guest Tony Monaco. Tickets, at $20, are available at 815-455-8000 or www.lakesidelegacy.org/2nd-sunday-series.
Vince Vaughn
FRIDAY: “The Internship,” starring Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson, opens in theaters.
Owen Wilson Photo provided
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The week’s happenings in news, sports and more. Page A2
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