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SUICIDE! How to Live When You Want to Die. When the only choice a Mother has is to live, and make sense of an unspeakable grief.
In How to Live When You Want to Die, LeAnn Hull opens up about the heartbreaking experience of losing a child to suicide and the subsequent discovery of a purpose-driven conviction to spread love, inspiration and encouragement in the midst of her grief. Her message strikes a welcome chord with anyone struggling through loss or trauma of any nature.
Hull lost her 16-year-old son to suicide in 2012. Andy was a great student, a star pitcher scouted by major league baseball teams, on his way to becoming an Eagle Scout, and was dearly loved by his friends. Andy’s suicide sent a piercing thunderbolt through the hearts of many thousands of people—his family, his friends and his community.
September is Suicide Prevention and Awareness Month.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 2017, suicide was the second leading cause of death among individuals between the ages of 10 and 34 in the United States.
In 2017, there were an estimated 1,400,000 suicide attempts, and on average there are 129 suicides per day according to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.
LeAnn Hull was born and raised in Phoenix, Arizona where she has been married for 39 years and raised four children. While raising their kids, she and her husband, Clay, owned and operated a construction company named Arizona Window Center. Being self-employed allowed her the time to invest in their children’s lives and in the community in which they lived. This journey was to last for the next 28 years.
Hull’s goal is to spread love, and offer encouragement for those affected by traumatic events such as loss. Because retreating into her anguish was not an option, Hull chose to manage her pain by sharing her story and creating Andy Hull’s Sunshine Foundation, with a message of raising awareness of steps to prevent suicide. Simply put: she wants to help others cope with tragedy and find peace. Hull currently speaks at venues including schools, hospitals, military bases and prisons.
Visit Andy Hull’s Sunshine Foundation
Andy Hull’s Sunshine Foundation
was created in 2013 to raise awareness of suicide prevention while providing coping skills to deal with life’s challenges.
Within months of her son Andy’s transition, LeAnn Hull established Andy Hull’s Sunshine Foundation, inspired by her son’s nickname, with the goal of sparing event just o