Since 2023, Post 113 in Kentucky has hosted three training sessions and two walks to promote the Legion’s veteran suicide prevention mission.
Promoting the mission of The American Legion’s Be the One veteran suicide prevention mission has become a passion for Hardin American Legion Post 113 in Elizabethtown, Ky. So much so that when the post’s June Be the One walk didn’t draw as many attendees as it had the year before, it led to the post looking at changing the time of year for the walk.
But that most recent walk was by any measure a success. It drew more than 120 attendees, including members of Post 113’s Legion Family and residents in the local community. The first such walk in 2025 featured 300 participants.
Department of Kentucky National Executive Committeeman Brandon Curry, who also serves as commander of Sons of The American Legion Squadron 113 said the walk took place on graduation weekend and also saw many families leaving for summer vacations.
“But we still had a good turnout for the cause. We were just battling a lot of other things going on,” said Curry, who works alongside Post 113 member Tom Folsom to coordinate the post’s Be the One effort. “We’re talking about doing it even earlier next year or maybe later next year, so we hopefully won’t have that problem again. Maybe early spring-ish or early fall-ish.”
Post 113 has hosted three VA S.A.V.E. Training session since 2023; all three have incorporated Be the One, the organizations veteran suicide prevention program. And as the promotion of the program continues, the community has continued to become more involved.
“Me and Tom have taken great pride in this Be the One campaign,” Curry said. “It’s awesome to see that our community is seeing us doing something good and also wanting to learn something more about this. We can only do so much, but it’s great to have that community support. If one person tells another person, that person tells two more. It’s a domino effect. It helps us get a broader network to get the word out to the community. The American Legion can get you resources to point you in the right direction.
“It’s great to see politicians and other organizations come out and help be supporters of this campaign … and see that this is a worthy cause and get behind it to let our community know that there is a problem and there’s help out there.”
It also helps that Post 113’s Legion Family also has rallied behind the effort. “It’s great that our whole Legion Family has gotten on board with this to bring out that information and get out there to not only our members, but also our community,” Curry said. “If you know somebody or you know a veteran or a family of veteran that has gone through difficult times, we’re here, and we can get you resources if you need help.”
Curry said he recently talked with Folsom about how they wish the program had been in existence when were both still in the military.
“It would have kind of reduced that stigma to let everyone know it’s OK not to be OK. It’s OK to go ask for help,” he said. “So now, we want to just keep bringing the awareness about veteran suicide. We want to help reduce that stigma and let our community know that, ‘Hey, The American Legion is here with resources if people need help or know a family member of a veteran or somebody else that needs help.
“Everybody goes through troubled times. We all have problems. We wanted to let everyone know we’re here, we’re here to provide support, provide resources for somebody who’s going through a difficult or tough time.”
- Be the One