Cover Me Veterans
Donation protected
We are losing too many Veterans to suicide, and we believe that we have a novel idea that might make an individual THINK TWICE about ending his or her life.
We know that temporarily reducing access to firearms is one of the most effective ways to minimize the risk when someone is experiencing chronic suicidal thoughts. However, members of the Veteran population often view their firearms as an important part of their culture, identity, and safety. Often, they do not want to hand their firearms to someone for safekeeping during these times, and frequently will not agree to place a lock on them, as it potentially makes them more difficult to use if needed emergently. Without imminent threat to harm themselves, they are entitled to their firearms.
Given this reality , we believe that it is imperative to develop a way to intervene when one has intent to harm him- or herself and has a firearm within reach.
Mental health professionals have developed a variety of important methods to try to decrease suicide attempts and completions (contracting with patients that they will not harm themselves, providing suicide hotline numbers, recommending that individuals call their mental health provider or go to a local emergency room if experiencing suicidal thoughts, and developing a “safety plan,” which outlines what to do to distract oneself from suicidal thoughts). All of these efforts are important and essential in their own right, and should not change. However, when impulsively considering suicide, individuals may not be open to calling someone, reporting to a local ER, or consulting his or her safety plan.
We believe that an individual might THINK TWICE about ending his or her life if prompted to look at an image of the thing or things in his or her life that matter most to them (their spouse, children, parents, pet, battle buddies, or a religious icon). The action of having to look at one of these images is likely an effective way to intervene, and we know of no other method that successfully intervenes at this crucial and incredibly dangerous time.
Cover Me Veterans™ will provide Veterans with the opportunity to have a relevant and meaningful image placed on their firearm free of charge. We are collaborating with businesses to offer different methods of doing so, from adhesive stickers of our logo (in development) to hydrographic printing directly on interchangeable pieces of the weapon, especially pistol hand grips.
We also aim to bring visibility to our logo, with the hope that the logo, itself, will be associated with our mission and the act of thinking twice. Display of the logo, therefore, may be 1) to help the Veteran if he or she is struggling with suicidal thoughts, or 2) simply a display of support for this important mission. Therefore, it has the POTENTIAL TO CUT THROUGH STIGMA and SAVE LIVES at the same time.
We will offer a variety of options, ranging from a sizable image placed on an obvious area of the firearm,
to a small Cover Me Veterans™ logo. We are a 501.(c)(3) non-profit organization. We are also talking with Veterans to obtain their ideas about how to provide this service most effectively, and consulting with legal counsel on issues related to logo design, trademarking, and business principles. Money raised by our current GoFundMe campaign will cover costs of starting this organization: legal fees, (patent/trademarking), organization development costs and marketing.
We will launch as soon as possible, as we are losing too many Veterans to suicide EVERY day.
We are sincerely grateful for your consideration.
With thanks,
Heidi Sigmund - Director, Cover Me Veterans
Paul Sigmund
Jeff Johnson
Rosalind Williams - Treasurer
Karen Anderson Oliver - Secretary
Ryan Wrolstad - Officer
Jeff Schiffman - Officer
https://www.facebook.com/Cover-Me-Veterans-1688116084796133/?notif_t=page_fan
We know that temporarily reducing access to firearms is one of the most effective ways to minimize the risk when someone is experiencing chronic suicidal thoughts. However, members of the Veteran population often view their firearms as an important part of their culture, identity, and safety. Often, they do not want to hand their firearms to someone for safekeeping during these times, and frequently will not agree to place a lock on them, as it potentially makes them more difficult to use if needed emergently. Without imminent threat to harm themselves, they are entitled to their firearms.
Given this reality , we believe that it is imperative to develop a way to intervene when one has intent to harm him- or herself and has a firearm within reach.
Mental health professionals have developed a variety of important methods to try to decrease suicide attempts and completions (contracting with patients that they will not harm themselves, providing suicide hotline numbers, recommending that individuals call their mental health provider or go to a local emergency room if experiencing suicidal thoughts, and developing a “safety plan,” which outlines what to do to distract oneself from suicidal thoughts). All of these efforts are important and essential in their own right, and should not change. However, when impulsively considering suicide, individuals may not be open to calling someone, reporting to a local ER, or consulting his or her safety plan.
We believe that an individual might THINK TWICE about ending his or her life if prompted to look at an image of the thing or things in his or her life that matter most to them (their spouse, children, parents, pet, battle buddies, or a religious icon). The action of having to look at one of these images is likely an effective way to intervene, and we know of no other method that successfully intervenes at this crucial and incredibly dangerous time.
Cover Me Veterans™ will provide Veterans with the opportunity to have a relevant and meaningful image placed on their firearm free of charge. We are collaborating with businesses to offer different methods of doing so, from adhesive stickers of our logo (in development) to hydrographic printing directly on interchangeable pieces of the weapon, especially pistol hand grips.
We also aim to bring visibility to our logo, with the hope that the logo, itself, will be associated with our mission and the act of thinking twice. Display of the logo, therefore, may be 1) to help the Veteran if he or she is struggling with suicidal thoughts, or 2) simply a display of support for this important mission. Therefore, it has the POTENTIAL TO CUT THROUGH STIGMA and SAVE LIVES at the same time.
We will offer a variety of options, ranging from a sizable image placed on an obvious area of the firearm,
to a small Cover Me Veterans™ logo. We are a 501.(c)(3) non-profit organization. We are also talking with Veterans to obtain their ideas about how to provide this service most effectively, and consulting with legal counsel on issues related to logo design, trademarking, and business principles. Money raised by our current GoFundMe campaign will cover costs of starting this organization: legal fees, (patent/trademarking), organization development costs and marketing.
We will launch as soon as possible, as we are losing too many Veterans to suicide EVERY day.
We are sincerely grateful for your consideration.
With thanks,
Heidi Sigmund - Director, Cover Me Veterans
Paul Sigmund
Jeff Johnson
Rosalind Williams - Treasurer
Karen Anderson Oliver - Secretary
Ryan Wrolstad - Officer
Jeff Schiffman - Officer
https://www.facebook.com/Cover-Me-Veterans-1688116084796133/?notif_t=page_fan
Organizer
Rosalind Williams
Organizer
Madison, WI
