Heidi Horsely: Franklin is our friend. He's also somebody that we work with, and our worlds just keep crossing, and we keep connecting. His father died by suicide in 1978. Franklin is a consultant, speaker, and trainer in peer grief support. After volunteering as a support group facilitator, he became an advisor to the Suicide Prevention Action Network and National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, and he is now developing suicide survivor services based on life coaching principles. He is also one of our Open to Hope authors. Welcome to the show Franklin.
Franklin Cook: Thanks so much for having me. It's so good to be with you both.
Gloria Horsely: Franklin, tell us about your journey. Tell us about your dad dying and how old you were, and that kind of thing, to start.
FC: My dad died a long time ago now, in 1978. He was 49 years old, and I was 24 years old. Unfortunately, he suffered a very, very severe depressive episode, which included psychotic features and suicidality, and he wound up finally being hospitalized. In fact, my dad died in a psychiatric hospital. So that's how our journey began. My mom, and I have three brothers, and it truly changed our lives -- shattered our lives at first -- and we can take that anywhere you'd like to go with it.