Members of the Iona community joined together to recognize Suicide Awareness Month on Sept. 8 at the Remind Me Who I Am event.

Mission and Ministry, Residential Life, Students for Peace, Psychology Club and Phi Sigma Sigma Sorority joined together to host the event and take part in the Fears vs. Dreams campaign.

Students entered the LaPenta EndZone and were asked to take and fill out a sheet of paper that stated, “What is your biggest fear?” and “What is your biggest dream?” The event was jammed packed and before it had even begun, students were filling out the papers and sharing amongst each other their biggest fears and dreams.

Senior Aly Luiso planned the event and thanked everyone for coming before explaining what exactly the Fears vs. Dreams campaign was all about.

When asked why she chose this specific campaign to bring to Iona College, Luiso mentioned, “I chose to do the Fears vs. Dreams campaign at this event because I truly believe that no matter how deep your fear is, we all have the power to make our greatest dreams come true.”

“We must embrace our fears and not allow them to get in the way of accomplishing our dreams,” said Luiso. “It was such a proud moment to see so many Gaels coming together to support each other’s fears and dreams.”

Dr. Daniel Ruckdeschel from Iona’s Counseling Center was then welcomed to the stage to give a few words on his thoughts of suicide. The room was silent as he spoke about how difficult it actually is to speak about suicide.

After the guest speaker, students took turns heading up to the stage to get their picture taken, holding up their Fears vs. Dreams sheets, taking the first step to conquering both of them.

Luiso later stated, “I didn’t want this event to be solely centered on the idea of suicide. Instead, I wanted to honor suicide awareness month while reminding students at Iona that they all play an irreplaceable role on campus and in our community.”

Students gathered and displayed their fears and dreams proudly for photos before taking the event to Mazzella Field, where the Hagan clock tower was lit purple in honor of Suicide Awareness Month.

“It has been a dream of mine to see the tower lit up purple for Suicide Awareness Month,” said Luiso. “It was an overwhelming feeling when I saw the tower lit up for the first time.”

Everyone was then given a purple balloon before heading to the field, where they released the balloons while keeping in mind someone or something that means a lot to them.

The crowd of participants took a lap around the field to remember those who have passed or are struggling with thoughts of suicide.

“My goal for this program was to inspire people that even on their darkest days there is always light. It was my hope to show everyone that they are all living stories and they should not give up on them,” said Luiso.

“The truth is, we all play such an important part in this world, and even when we fail to recognize that ourselves, we are surrounded by amazing people at Iona who will remind us of our importance.”