JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Sherri Knoll’s son would be 23 years old now. She imagines he’d probably be in college or fresh out of it, ready to embark on a life full of possibilities. She will never know.

Her son took his life eight years ago, just after his 15th birthday.

The Jefferson City woman attended “Show Me You Care About Suicide Prevention,” a two-day conference here this week, to see the suicide counselor, who helped her get through the years of numbness, receive an award.

“Talk to your kids (about suicide) like you do about alcohol and seat belts. Teach them to be kind to other kids and teach them not to keep secrets,” Ms. Knoll advised. “As parents, you need to educate yourself. It’s not something you get away from. You live with it the rest of your life.”

The conference featured several presentations on suicide. Presenters and workshops covered everything from youth suicide prevention and evaluating suicide threats to veterans issues and minority suicides.

Keith Schafer, director of the Missouri Department of Mental Health, opened the conference with sobering statistics on suicide in the state. He said Missouri had 850 of the roughly 30,000 suicides reported nationwide last year. Mr. Schafer also said a high incidence of suicide has been reported in the National Guard.

The economy plays a role in suicide attempts, Mr. Schafer added. But it isn’t necessarily directly tied to being the sole cause.

“One of the myths we need to overcome, one of the facts we need to recognize and understand, is that suicide is not a spur-of-the-moment thing,” he said. “It’s generally associated with mental health problems people have.”

Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the state, according to the Missouri Suicide Prevention Resource Center. An average of 705 residents die by suicide each year.

Between 1997 and 2007, there were 121 self-inflicted deaths in Buchanan County, according to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services. Seventy of those deaths were in the 35-to-64 age range. Since 1999, Buchanan County has had a higher rate of suicides than the state average.

Last week, a St. Joseph man shot his partner multiple times before turning the gun on himself. Albert King died from the self-inflicted gunshot wound, while Jeanna Smith survived with injuries.

Before the early 1990s, the conventional thought was that blacks didn’t commit suicide, said Bryan Evans, associate program director of Mental Health America, eastern Missouri chapter. But there was a significant increase from 1980 to the mid-1990s.

“We have yet to find a particular reason,” Mr. Evans said. “But if it had not been for this period, we would not have started to look at some of the causes and the incidents of suicides of African Americans. Before then ... suicide was a white thing.”

Mr. Evans spoke on suicide prevention for black youths at the conference.

“We know African American men take their lives far greater than females,” he said, adding that it’s most often by handgun.

Dr. David Jobes, professor of psychology for the Catholic University of America, said there have always been suicides among youth. But youth today face a unique set of issues that earlier generations didn’t experience.

“Internet, social networking, Facebook have transformed the way we connect and the way we communicate, and it’s definitely changed the lives of our kids,” he said.

Alonzo Weston can be reached at alonzo.weston@newspressnow.com.

Know the signs

Information from the American Association of Suicidology, on the prevention of suicide:

Be aware of the warning signs and seek help as soon as possible by contacting a mental health professional or calling (800) 273-8255 for a referral, should you witness, hear or see anyone exhibiting any one or more of the following:

• Hopelessness
• Rage, uncontrolled anger or seeking revenge
• Acting recklessly or engaging in risky activities, seemingly without thinking
• Feeling trapped like there’s no way out
• Increased alcohol or drug use
• Withdrawing from friends, family and society
• Anxiety, agitation, unable to sleep or sleeping all the time
• Dramatic mood changes
• No reason for living, no sense of purpose in life