LAYTON — A couple of years ago, Margaret Jackson was honored at a YWCA luncheon.

As part of her remarks, she decided to incorporate a few sentiments about her son's recent suicide. She called the response to her remarks "mind-boggling."

"So many people came up to me afterward, sharing their stories. They just wanted to talk to someone," she said. "They'd been waiting and waiting for someone to talk to."

This is the story of how one woman got involved in Utah efforts to educate the public about mental health and suicide among young people.

The death of her son provided the catalyst.

Eddie Jackson has bright eyes and a hundred-watt smile in a photograph. Affable and outgoing, the young man had a natural talent for public speaking. He won several state and regional awards for his oratory skills. One plaque on his bedroom wall recognizes him as the winner of a speaking contest at a Baptist conference in Phoenix. The topic: "Never give up."

Though at ease in front of a crowd, Eddie wasn't at ease with himself.

Edward and Margaret Jackson saw the first signs of trouble between junior high and high school. His parents noticed extreme mood swings in their adopted and only child, but the adoption agency told the Jacksons his biological parents had no history of mental health problems.

A physical exam revealed nothing but growing pains. The Jacksons turned to a psychiatrist who prescribed Prozac for Eddie. The pills didn't make much difference, so he stopped taking them.

Margaret knew her son was struggling and watched him struggle for control through his late teens and early 20s.

A winner of a state young achievers award, Eddie earned a scholarship to Weber State University. But he decided he wasn't ready for college after a semester or two. He married at 21, had a child and divorced. He married again, but that didn't work out either.

Eddie had various attempts at mental-health counseling, but after his first experience with medication back in high school, he wasn't interested in taking anything. Besides, he wanted to join the military but was told he'd have to be off antidepressants for six months. He believed a good diet and working out would make him better.

About 18 months before he died, Eddie had connected with his biological family. He developed a good relationship with his birth mother and three brothers. He learned his family did have a history of mental illness and suicide.

"I don't know if that gave him permission to do what he did," Margaret Jackson said.