HOPE Squad helps students

We often hear negative things about young people today. I feel it's time to recognize them for the good they do. Students at Riverton High School have organized the HOPE Squad, a group of students dedicated to raising awareness of the problem of teenage suicide and helping their peers choose life. My son and another young man at Riverton committed suicide within three weeks of each other in 2005. The HOPE (Help Other People Endure) Squad was born the following year. They sponsor an annual HOPE Week at the school, which ended this past Saturday with the HOPE Walk. About 200 students participated — double the number from last year. I congratulate these students for taking a stand for life and helping their fellow students and others in the community make the same commitment.

Larry A. Eggett

Riverton