8 Comments
Sep 10Liked by Kali White VanBaale

This breaks my heart. I just learned of Vanessa's death over the weekend and saq her mother was one of very first students back in 2000. I didn't know how Vanessa died until now. She was such a beautiful girl.

A friend of mine just had her teen at Clive Behavioral Health and said nothing was done to help the teen, even after thoughts of suicide. The teen stayed less than a week without any improvement.

We need so much more mental health awareness and support for all ages in Iowa.

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What a small world. Thank you for sharing this with me, Jane.

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Sep 12Liked by Kali White VanBaale

What a tragedy. Thank you for sharing.

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Heartbreaking! So tragic. Thank you for continuing to bring these stories and issues to light.

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Sep 11Liked by Kali White VanBaale

Thank you for this important piece. My heart goes out to these families who have lost their children and to everyone who has lost someone to suicide. Having lost my old biological father to suicide when I was 15, I know just how devastating these losses are. Kali, thanks for your important work and important messaging!

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Thank you, Leslie. It's been a tough few years in our little community. I'm so sorry you've had personal experience with this. It never gets easier to hear these stories.

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Sep 10Liked by Kali White VanBaale

An absolute heartbreaking but powerful story. Thankyou for putting this in substack. It should be in the newspapers. Tom S.

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Thank you, Tom!

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