Reply to Fairfax County teenager Bryan Glenn

Forum Index » Off-Topic

Reply to "Fairfax County teenager Bryan Glenn"

Subject:

Emoticons





More smilies

Text Color: Font: Close Marks

[quote=Anonymous]Dear Community members,

First off, I want to send my sincere condolences to the Glenns for their loss of such a fine young man.  Bryan is and will forever be missed by all who loved him - and there were MANY who do.

Dear Glenn family, if speculation regarding how Bryan died is causing you anguish, say the word and hopefully this thread can be removed.  People here have suggested  that talking about someone else's tragedy is somehow damaging to you.  I sincerely hope not.  Things affecting one teen in a community are likely to affect others.    As a community many are concerned that you have had the appropriate response from our police department  They also want you to know they, too feel pain and grief.  We all grieve the loss of such a fine citizen.

I want to dispel some of the rumors/misunderstandings/ I've read on this blog.

My friend found Bryan - she was with a group of mothers - not men, and no teens.  She is haunted by the memory but consoled by the fact she spared a teen or the family from seeing him the way she did.  She to this day does NOT think it was suicide.

The private investigation continues.  Although the Washington Post article said how he died and speculated on it being death by suicide, neither has been determined.  That article was a shameful, defensive piece of journalism.  I'm preparing a letter to the editor asking for a retraction and discussion from WaPo leadership about why/how they allowed such blatant disregard for public safety in not reporting about the "missing" teen whose car was parked next to a public park where the community members walk their dogs, go running, bike riding, etc.  How was that not a matter newsworthy enough to print?  And why didn't they follow accepted journalistic practices/protocols on how to appropriately report on teen "suicide", which this last one has not been ruled?  For example, they claimed the method of Bryan's death.  That was totally inappropriate and against best practices.

There was evidence he wasn't alone.  Too many donuts for one person to eat, two water bottles, radio tuned to a station he would not have listened to.

Toxicology reports take time.  Out of respect for the family, the authorities have not released information to the public.  The public may never know the cause of death - the Glenns may wish not to divulge the results of the coroner's autopsy.  That is their prerogative.

The money being raised for Friends of Bryan Glenn PayPal account is being used to fund ONLY the funeral expenses and to help pay for the PI.  Any remaining funds after those two things are fully paid for will be donated in Bryan's name to the Wounded Warrior fund.

I don't know why talking about Mental Health and Wellness issues gets under some people's skin.  This is not a freak show, disgusting or repulsive (read on another local forum).  If three young men out of one local High School died of Leukemia (a disease of the blood) then I am guessing it would be OK to talk about it as a community and the school would likely hold a 5K to raise awareness and fund raise for Leukemia research.  If they died of diabetes (disease of the pancreas) then I'm expecting the community would be doing the same to fight against juvenile diabetes through community awareness and training - maybe even doing better screening of the kids to determine if they were at risk for this disease.

My point is this - if we as a community are shamed into silence in the face of teens making impulsive (or even well planned out)  decisions that are fatal the we NEED to talk about it in order to save the next kid.

Suicide is the third leading killer of teens in the nation.  35% of Fairfax Country teens are depressed. Great programs are being incorporated into the fabric at McLean, TJ, Langley, South Lakes and Madison.  If you have a kid at Woodson PLEASE tell Jeff Yost you want to see the same kind of thing there.

Three deaths in one High School (called a "cluster by experts" - all military teens.  Two young men took their own lives in the space of 20 months.  One more died by unknown causes - with the community highly involved in the search for him and many questions left in people's minds as to just what happened.  Something caused this young man, full of promise, with dreams, goals, athleticism, intelligence, spirit, community service (working on his Eagle Scout Project), tight-know family and many strong friendships to skip school and get involved in SOMETHING that had a tragic ending for him.  What makes a teen make that choice?

The Army has a suicide problem and is leading the Nation in Awareness and Prevention Training from the top to the bottom.  They believe it is a generational thing - as only one third of those who have died in the 18-34 age group category have been to war.  This is serious business, folks.  Mental illness is often treatable and some suicides are preventable.  Let's get Suicide "Out of the Darkness" and let's "Send the Silence Packing"

Let's partner (school/local government/non-profits/parent organisations) together to grow a safer environment for All of our teens.

Look at what positive changes can be born of grief - it can be turned into a passion to ensure this doesn't happen to one more teen: http://joshafoundation.org/news-events/

[/quote]

Options

	Disable HTML in this message
	Disable BB Code in this message
	Disable smilies in this message

Review message

Search Recent Topics Hottest Topics