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www.ahwatukee.com
IS IT SLAVERY?
Wednesday, OCTOBER 17, 2018
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ADDICTION HELP
hirty-one East Valley teenagers have completed suicide in the past 15 months – including five since Aug. 30 – with the latest a 16-year-old Chandler boy who took his life last week. The alarming trend has prompted parents, school administrators and teachers, youth outreach workers, a state legislator and the mayors of Gilbert and Chandler to mobilize the region and develop a strategy to combat a complicated issue with no easy answer. The most recent deaths occurred in Queen Creek, east Mesa, Chandler and Gilbert, with the youngest an 11-year-old boy. Although the multi-city, multi-dimensional response to the heartbreaking trend is in an early stage, education consultant Katey
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McPherson believes she is making progress in developing the community-wide approach that she says is needed to deter teen suicide. “Everyone needs to speak the same language and take action,’’ McPherson said. “Mental health and wellness are an ongoing, progressive education. It’s a constant conversation all year long.’’ McPherson has been building a coalition of allies to combat teen suicide – including Gilbert Mayor Jenn Daniels, Chandler Mayor-elect Kevin Hartke, state Rep. Jeff Weninger, R-Chandler – as well as community organizations focused on behavioral health issues in both municipalities. The East Valley Behavioral Health Council in Gilbert and For Our City-Chandler have pledged their support. Gilbert Public Schools also is leading the new East Valley Prevention Collaborative, a network of East Valley school
Ahwatukee girl, 9, loses kidneys after 5-year battle BY COTY DOLORES MIRANDA AFN Contributor
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@AhwatukeeFN
31 teen suicides in 15 months fuel alarm here BY JIM WALSH AFN Staff Writer
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@AhwatukeeFN |
ily Rios needs a kidney. After more than five years of various treatments for nephrotic syndrome and steroid-sensitive nephrotic syndrome, she underwent a bilateral nephrectomy on Oct. 6 – and lost both her kidneys. The Ahwatukee girl is only 9. It’s been a rough road for her and her family, and now they’re seeking a kidney transplant donor – not only for their daughter, but for others they’ve learned about who are also in need of a transplant. “I’d love to have Lily get a kidney, that’s a given. But I also want to get the word out about kidney transplants to help not only my daughter, but everyone,” said her mother, Becky Kopp. For Lily, a third-grader at Paideia Academy of South Phoenix, a charter school, the last few months have been especially difficult as her kidney function continued to decline precipitously.
Lily had been diagnosed at age 3 with nephrotic syndrome, a condition that causes the kidneys to leak large amounts of protein into the urine that leads to a litany of problems – including swelling of body tissues and a greater susceptibility to infections. “The best way I can describe it is it’s an autoimmune disease,” said Kopp. Mother and daughter had returned to Ahwatukee only the year before after living in San Diego. Becky Kopp grew up in Ahwatukee, graduating from Mountain Pointe High School in 2001. See
LILY on page 8 (Special to AFN)
Though Lily Rios of Ahwatukee is only 9 years old, she needs a kidney after losing both of hers to a rare autoimmune disease diagnosed when she was only 3.
districts that will work together on deterring teen suicide. Noticeably absent is a state-level suicide prevention coordinator. Though that position was created by the State Legislature in the final days of the 2018 session, it has yet to be filled. Suicide is the leading cause of death of Arizonans between the ages of 10 and 14 and the second leading cause of death for those 15-24. Wenninger said he supports more mandatory training for teachers to recognize the warning signs of teen suicide and child abuse. He praised the Tempe Union High School District’s recent groundbreaking training sessions to educate more than 800 employees on the warning signs of suicide and said he hopes it will serve as an example for other districts. See
SUICIDES on page 20