Good news offered a brighter light of hope at Saturday's Third Annual Out of the Darkness Walk in Bobby Ferguson Park.
Betty Jackson Carpenter, the event's chairman, said this year's walk attracted 383 participants - about triple the during the previous two years.
The event is organized by American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.
Carpenter attributed the upswing in participation this year to more concerted efforts at notifying local residents about the event's existence and cause.
"This year, we got our word out through more social media as well as through passing out fliers," Carpenter said.
Carpenter estimated this year's walk collected more than $14,000 compared with about $5,000 last year.
The money raised by the walk will go to financing educational programs, research and proposed public policy changes and improvements, as well as support for survivors of suicide loss. Money also goes toward helping educate mental health professionals, reach out to schools and raise public awareness about suicidal tendencies.
"We have had both kids and adults participate in these walks for the last three years," Carpenter said. "The kids are mostly in their teens but we have adults who come out to walk the 1.7-mile course who are well into their 70s."
Carpenter said the "Out of the Darkness" title for the annual fundraiser grew out of the need to erase the stigma of suicide and bring it into the mainstream of mental-health conversations.