In 2014 I lost my dad to suicide. I still remember the morning I found him. It was probably the nicest, most beautiful day we had in November. November 7th to be exact. It was around 9:40 in the morning. It was warm and sunny; one of those days that doesn’t feel like things are supposed to go wrong. However, I don’t suppose there is ever a good day to lose your best friend regardless of the weather. This day was the most traumatic day of my life, but from this day there was something that grew within me. I believe it was willpower and determination to shut down any stigmas of mental health that I possibly could. Through my grief I found much relief and peace in spending time with my horse and dog, and I wanted to find a way to share that peace with others especially children and teens. I decided to become a trauma informed therapist who provides therapy services that include horses and dogs. I am currently almost done with my bachelor’s in psychology with a concentration in child and adolescent development. I was recently inducted into the National Society of Leadership and Success as well as made honor role. I was just recently accepted into a master’s program all while raising and homeschooling my two young boys. I am working hard to achieve the necessary schooling requirements so that I can begin to make a difference. In the meantime, every year in September I make shirts and sell them on social media to promote suicide awareness and like to share facts and information as often as I can to help educate and soften the heart of others as they learn the importance of breaking stigmas against mental health especially in men. Losing my dad taught me a lot, but one of the facts that I learned that majority of suicides are completed by men who are middle-aged, and I will forever fight for the voices that were suppressed by the lies of depression and anxiety. I also believe that early intervention is crucial in mental health which is another reason that I feel the well-being of children is so important. Breaking the stigma at such a young age allows the children of our future to grow up emotionally intelligent and with the education that mental health is just as important to be compassionate toward as physical health is. Thank you for your time and consideration. Blessings, Taylor Kimball

I have always had a heart for helping people and a love for animals. From the time I was a little girl I knew I wanted to “take care of people” as I would say. I have always had a particular interest in mental health and advocating for those who are affected by it. Throughout my life I have endure many hardships, because of that, compassion and empathy grew from within me in hopes that I could help someone else feel free from their grief and pain. One event that led me to pursue a master’s in counseling was losing my father to suicide. In 2014, I found my father after he died by suicide. This was the beginning of the most traumatic day of my life. Because of this loss, I was aching in every possible way. I wanted something good to come of his death. One of the ways that I began to feel relief form the grief was being outside with my horse and dog. Then it dawned on me, I could help people through their trauma with the assistance of animals just like I was getting through my trauma one moment at a time with the love of my animals. I had the love of my horse and when I couldn’t be with her, I had my beloved lab. I began to do more research and found something called equine therapy. I knew I had a passion for helping people through trauma and animals especially horses, so from there I changed my goals as I was getting my prerequisites done for nursing school so that I could be a psychiatric nurse. As I began working as a Certified Nursing Assistant, I realized my passion wasn’t necessarily in the medical field, but rather the mental and emotional part of healthcare. Nonetheless, I changed my mind and decided to begin my journey toward my degree in counseling. My goals for a career after I earn my master’s degree in counseling is becoming a trauma informed licensed therapist who provides equine therapy for children and teens. I want nothing more than to save lives and provide care and advocacy for each person who steps through my doors. I started my degree at Southern New Hampshire, and I am currently almost finished with my bachelor’s degree in psychology with a concentration in child and adolescent development. I currently have a 3.723 GPA and was recently inducted into the National Society of Leadership and Success which gives me the confidence that I can get through my masters program both with a burning passion and academic success.

I have been impacted by suicide because I lost my very best friend, my dad. In 2014 my father died by suicide. He struggled with the misdiagnosis of bipolar 2 disorder for many years until towards the end of his life. He was finally diagnosed correctly, but was still working on getting his medication managed properly. He was the absolute best dad, friend, son, brother and grandpa. On November 7th of 2014 I found my dad who had unfortunately already died. That was the most traumatic day of my life, but out of it I knew that I wanted to work with those who have endured trauma. Mental health became a passion of mine and a new mission grew from within me. I wanted to help people. I want to help people-specifically children who have endured trauma have a safe place to just be who they are and feel what they need to feel. I want to be the light in someone’s darkest season of their story. This event has affected my mental health in many ways including increasing my anxiety. After he died, I went back to college to finish my degree and struggled through many of my classes as I navigated not being able to go back to the house I was raised in and no longer having my dad anymore either. There is a deep passion within me that wants to ensure that one day I can share my story with someone who feels hopeless and lost and lead them back to the road of hope and light. My goals are to open my own practice and provide equine therapy for children and teens. I can be a rather reserved person and very non-confrontational until it comes time to advocate for someone else, especially the well-being of a child. I am a mother of two little boys two and four years old and I want to be the person and advocate that my father was for me throughout my many struggles as a child. I want to show my sons that their mom can do hard things like achieve a master’s degree and open her own business. They have watched me go through my bachelor’s for psychology with a concentration in child and adolescent development and achieve honors and a GPA of 3.72 while giving me high-fives as I cheer for my grades as they come back. It is important to me to instill in them the same work ethic that my dad instilled in me.