Frequently asked questions

Answered by a team member at Alliance of Hope for Suicide Loss Survivors

• What is your mission?

  Kindness matters – and to the more than five million people around the world who lose a loved one to suicide each year – it matters a lot. We provide healing and compassionate support during the lonely and tumultuous aftermath of suicide. We help people survive suicide loss, and go beyond “just surviving,” to lead meaningful and productive lives.

• How are donations used?

  Each year, the Alliance of Hope serves tens of thousands of suicide loss survivors. We rely on donations and private grants to fund our work. Your contribution will help increase awareness about the impact of suicide on those left behind grieving – and fund the Alliance of Hope’s life-saving work. All donations are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.

• What can be done with a $100 donation?

  $140 sponsors the Alliance of Hope Community Forum for a day. Our forum is a 24/7 support group overseen by a mental health professional and trained moderators. It is the largest interactive community of loss survivors in the world. Every day, 500 people visit seeking support. Many say it's the first place they go in the morning and the last place at night. Many call it their lifeline.

• What progress has been made already thanks to your donors?

  Because of the generous and compassionate donors who care about helping survivors of suicide loss, every single day we receive expressions of gratitude from people who say the Alliance of Hope got them through the darkest hours of their life. You can see our latest Impact Report here: https://www.2021impact.allian…

• What is the history of your organization?

  The Alliance of Hope was founded as a labor of love in 2008 by Ronnie Susan Walker, a mental health counselor who lived through the traumatic loss of her stepson to suicide in 1995.

  During her own grief journey, Ronnie recognized there was a void in resources for people bereaved by suicide. She intuitively understood what researchers have validated in recent years: suicide loss survivors are a high-risk population for suicide themselves if they don’t receive healing support in the aftermath. She also knew firsthand that in-person support groups were few and far between, but that many suicide loss survivors needed support 24/7.

  When she took a class at a local high school to learn how to build a website, her goal was simply to extend friendship – and healing, compassionate support – to other survivors. At the time, she did not know there were more than 45 million others, just in the U.S., whose lives had been forever altered when their loved ones died by suicide.

  She launched allianceofhope.org not having any idea of what was to come. She added a community forum, where survivors could come to share their stories and connect with others who understood.

  Much like the movie “A Field of Dreams”, bereaved souls from across the globe made their way to this healing, online space. The first member joined, then the 50th, and then the 15,000th. In the first few years, Ronnie personally responded to each new survivor. Eventually other loss survivors began to volunteer under Ronnie’s guidance. They too reached out with compassion to others who were hurting.

  Today, more than 100 suicide loss survivors have volunteered as moderators and stewards of our online forum, which operates like a 24/7 group for thousands of people. They ensure it remains a healing culture for all who seek support. Many more talented, caring souls have provided pro bono support on our board of directors and advisory council. We would not be here without them.

  As the Alliance of Hope enters its 14th year, our work is more important than ever. As suicide rates continue to rise, so do the number of loss survivors seeking support. According to a recent British Medical Journal study: individuals bereaved by suicide are 80% more likely to drop out of school or quit their jobs – and 64% more likely to attempt suicide – than individuals grieving sudden losses by natural causes. Indeed, suicide “postvention” is suicide prevention.