MACHIAS, Maine — The story of Army Capt. Justin Fitch, who is fighting terminal colon cancer and for the lives of others in uniform by advocating for suicide prevention, spurred local retired Navy Corpsman Shawn Goodwin to take action.
Goodwin organized Saturday’s all-terrain vehicle event, Machias ATV Ride for a Reason, to benefit Active Heroes, an organization devoted to reducing military suicides. He invited Fitch, a commander at the U.S. Army’s Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center in Natick, Massachusetts, to be the keynote speaker.
Fitch, 32, said he was depressed, was not sleeping well and was under combat stress when he considered suicide while deployed in Iraq seven years ago. He got his depression in check by starting a regimen of medication and therapy. Fitch said Wednesday in an email interview he knows firsthand that “suicide is completely preventable.”
As an advocate for nonprofit Active Heroes and its Carry the Fallen campaign, he urges making it “acceptable to ask for help.”
“I read Justin’s story online and said, ‘Let’s get something going here,’” Goodwin, who is from Cherryfield, said Wednesday. “This little event that I thought would attract 20 to 30 people has turned into a big event, with more than 150 people signed up so far.”
Machias police will escort the ATV riders through town, starting at Machias Savings Bank, which is a local sponsor, to Dunkin’ Donuts on Route 1, where riders will jump on a trail heading to the Irving convenience store in Harrington.
The parade is scheduled to start at noon, and the group will hit the trail at 12:30 p.m.
Fitch will speak at the afterparty at Skywalker’s Bar and Grille, which starts at 4:30 p.m. and is open to the public, not just riders, Goodwin said, adding a portion of the restaurant’s proceeds Saturday will be sent to Active Heroes.
The mission of Active Heroes is to strengthen military families, serve veterans and benefit active-duty military by providing financial support and community reintegration, the group’s website states.
“Active Heroes is dedicated to connecting and helping America’s military families through financial assistance, active challenges, leadership training and community outreach to halt the triggering point and stress associated with ‘hard times’ that lead to suicide,” it states.
Most people don’t know that military deaths by suicide resulted in more casualties than the war in Afghanistan in 2012, when there were 319 suicides and 295 combat deaths, according to the Department of Defense, or that the Veterans Administration, using data about veterans who use their services, estimates 22 veterans a day take their own lives.
Goodwin said he has been touched by suicide on more than one occasion with his brothers- and sisters-in-arms and said if one vulnerable veteran changes his mind, all the effort to organize Saturday’s ATV ride will be worth the effort.
He is especially thankful for Fitch, since doctors have given him just months to live.
“The funny part is, he’s thanking me when he’s spending part of the last few days he’s alive at [the Maine event],” Goodwin said. “That’s humbling.”
Veterans, servicemembers and their family and friends who need help with a mental health crisis can connect with trained counselors via the toll-free Military Crisis Line, 800-273-8255. They also can chat online at MilitaryCrisisLine.net/Chat, or send a text message to 838255 to receive free, confidential support 24 hours a day.