18 Veterans Per Day Are Lost to Suicide
How Christian communities are stepping up to end this crisis.
I recently attended the NRB’s International Christian Ministry Convention in Nashville and learned more about the work being done to help veterans and their families. As a military spouse of 30 years, I was unaware of the rising epidemic of suicide in our military community. In 2023, 6,398 veterans died by suicide—18 veterans per day! It was 16 per day in 2001—the trajectory is going in the wrong direction. It’s an urgent matter that must be addressed and Christian communities must step up.
The National Religious Broadcasters association (NRB) is the world’s largest association of Christian communicators. They’ve launched an inspiring program—the Veterans’ Ministry Initiative—to help connect veterans and local churches. Churches and other organizations across the nation have stepped up to partner in this endeavor.
Source:mentalhealth.va.gov
From Tragedy to Advocacy
Providentially at the NRB convention I sat next to a vibrant, beautiful lady who quickly introduced herself and during our conversation, I learned her story. Kristen Christy’s first husband, an Air Force Lieutenant Colonel, died by suicide eighteen years ago. It has been an excruciating path, but she is now using her family’s tragedy to save lives of others.
Lt. Col Don Christy came home from Iraq with internal burdens no human alone can bare. While in theater, he was in charge of the dignified transport of human remains. He witnessed these fallen soldiers getting sent back home to their families in flag draped coffins. Kristen said that when he came home “he was different.” He was “withdrawn, unable to sleep and wasn’t communicating like he had in the past”—she thinks he was suffering from post-traumatic stress. In April 2008, Kristen received the knock on the door that no military spouse ever wants to receive. The chaplain and coroner notified her that Don had taken his own life.
The impacts of Don’s loss reverberated through their family. Kristen’s youngest son attempted suicide eight years later and her oldest son, Ryan, struggled with drug abuse and also attempted suicide. Ryan went missing in 2015 and has never been found. Yet Kristen hasn’t let her past predict her future.
In 2018, Kristen Christy, remarried to an Airman, was honored as the 2018 Air Force Spouse of the Year for her suicide prevention advocacy. Kristen told me that one night she had an epiphany. The suicide hotline number was hard to remember: 1-800-273-8255. It needed to be simpler, like 911. The thought wasn’t fleeting and wouldn’t leave her mind. Despite obstacles thrown in her way for 12 years, she ultimately succeeded in getting the suicide and crisis lifeline 988 launched. The first prompt when calling the number is for veterans or military connected individuals. The lifeline is monitored by over 200 local crisis centers across the United States and territories, Canada, and overseas military bases and has answered more than 17 million calls since July 16, 2022.
The Veterans Ministry Initiative
The NRB’s new Veterans Ministry Initiative helps equip churches with resources to effectively minister to veterans in need across the nation. The NRB also connected with the Veteran’s Administration’s Center for Faith to provide a resource to faith groups around the nation who want to bring lasting healing and help to veterans.
Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church in Fort Lauderdale, Florida has begun the initial stages of their Veterans Ministry launch. I spoke with Coral Ridge Outreach Director Duane Miller who is spearheading the program. As the son of a veteran, he brings a personal passion to this ministry. He’s committed to serving veterans holistically, addressing not only their physical needs but also their spiritual ones as well.
Coral Ridge already provides housing to people in need in their community, but Miller envisions dedicated housing exclusively for veterans. Recognizing that many veterans are driven by a continued desire to serve, Coral Ridge plans to connect them with ministry opportunities to help others, creating a venue where veterans can come together, find purpose, and serve side by side.
Another Veterans Ministry Initiative was launched at First Baptist Dallas which is built around three pillars: identifying and connecting veterans and military families, supporting them in practical ways, and helping them grow through discipleship and outreach.
Retired Lt. Col. David Young and his wife Tammy help lead the Dallas ministry. Tammy points out that many military families have been through “trauma, loss, and isolation.” Dave and Tammy want to come alongside other veterans and “link arms and love on one another.” They want to help veterans find one another and walk together through both challenges and victories of life. Dave says, “Your battle buddy might be sitting next to you in church, and you don’t even know it.” Dave desires to see lives saved and transformed through this work, “If we can help one more veteran come to know the Lord or save one more life, it’s all worth it. In the church, no one should feel alone.”
It’s refreshing to have faith communities step up to serve military communities who’ve given so much for our freedom. If your church wants to learn more or get involved in helping veterans, reach out to the NRB’s Veterans Ministry Initiative program.
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