Neeley's Favorite Story of 2024
Mental Health Stories Inspire Hope in Our Personal Struggles
Editor's Note:
As the year comes to a close, we've once again asked the DTN/Progressive Farmer reporting team to pick out the most significant, most fun, or otherwise their favorite, story of 2024. They range from solar events to seeing how seed corn is produced, political/policy coverage to labor unrest impact, to also including the profiles of American farmers and ranchers who shared their marketing, production and even life choices with our writers. We hope you enjoy our writers' favorites, kicking off with today's story by DTN Staff Reporter Todd Neeley.
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LINCOLN, Neb. (DTN) -- We all have a back story.
For me it's nothing unique or special but my tale includes a life-long list of family mental health struggles and -- thankfully in my own life -- stories of redemption, recovery and grit in the face of what can seem like never-ending storms.
I admire folks who can talk about a subject so deeply painful and personal as mental health and suicide -- and to do so in the context of helping others.
This is why I chose for favorite story of the year my contribution to a special Progressive Farmer issue on mental health challenges in rural America: see "Training Empowers Rural Clergy, Other Community Leaders to Respond to Mental Health Crises," https://www.dtnpf.com/….
The story focused on how clergy are getting involved in training and then executing plans to strengthen suicide prevention in rural America.
Perhaps what is most telling and revealing about the pervasiveness of mental health struggles, is that clergy and others have reached a point of critical mass -- they understand the importance of opening their hearts and their lives about the loss of loved ones to suicide.
On a personal level, the stories were cathartic in driving home a point written between the lines: Our own struggles could be so much worse.
My family's stories of mental health struggles will stay in the background for now.
In this Progressive Farmer series, it was inspiring to see others arrive at a place where it is OK to share painful personal tales, if there's even just a small chance they might be helpful to someone else in need.
Todd Neeley can be reached at todd.neeley@dtn.com
Follow him on social platform X @DTNeeley
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