CLEVELAND – Medina Supply, a division of The Shelly Company, and the Suicide Prevention Education Alliance (SPEA) are debuting a themed mixer truck that aims to raise awareness about suicide prevention.
The themed truck will be unveiled at 7:30 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 6, during the 10th annual Suicide Prevention Education Alliance (SPEA) Into the Light Walk at Cleveland Metroparks Zoo. The truck will serve as a moving billboard in local parades, at fairs and at SPEA fundraisers and will help to educate people about the important topic.
SPEA has provided its proven suicide-prevention program to more than 120,000 students and currently serves 132 Northeast Ohio high schools. SPEA’s professional instructors teach teens to identify peers who may be at risk of suicide, how to respond and where to refer them. Self-referral is also encouraged.
SPEA and Medina Supply collaborated on the design of the themed truck and are very proud of the outcome.
“The Medina Supply themed truck will undoubtedly save lives,” said SPEA Executive Director Pat Lyden. “We will never know how many lives are saved and how much hope is restored as a result of people seeing SPEA’s name and website on the truck.”
The Shelly Company has been using its ready mix concrete trucks as moving billboards since 2009. The company’s themed truck program reflects its employees’ passions and experiences.
Losing a co-worker to suicide in March 2011 influenced the group’s decision to feature SPEA’s message on a water truck previously, and now the group is dedicating a ready mix concrete truck as well.
“People will see the ready mix concrete truck at a job site or in traffic and become more aware of SPEA’s program. We partner with SPEA and encourage people who are struggling to please seek and receive the help that is available,” said Todd Surrarrer, sales manager at Medina Supply.
