TR’s Sigma Tau will host suicide prevention walk
Sigma Tau, a TR student organization, will host a suicide prevention walk, Out of the Darkness, April 30.
Registration will start at 9 a.m., and the walk will begin at 10 a.m. on TRE Campus.
Out of the Darkness, which is open to the public, raises money to create awareness about mental health.
For the last three years, the walk has been held on SE Campus. But this year’s walk will be held on TRE Campus so participants can walk a three-mile course along the Trinity River.
Individuals can find more information and register at afsp.donordrive.com/event/tccc/.
Cindy Mask, the co-chair of the walk, is asking students to submit photos of peers they know who have committed suicide. The pictures will be framed and used in a memorial during the walk.
Students who would like to submit a picture can email Mask at cindy.mask@tccd.edu.
“They were here. They were alive. They made a difference,” Mask said.
— Karen Rios
SE presentation to feature managing financial credit
SE Campus success coaches will conduct Money Mondays: Credit Basics noon-1 p.m. April 18 in ESEE 1210.
Edward Hicks will help students understand credit, explaining how students can start building credit in college and the things that affect a student’s credit. His goal in this session is to create awareness concerning the importance of credit while students are still in college.
“I hope that credit stops being this mystery and students start to think about it before graduating,” he said.
Several credit cards are designed specifically for young people still in school, including Discover It Chrome, Wells Fargo Cash Back College Visa Card and Journey Student Rewards Card from Capital One.
Students can ask questions after the session and find out how to check their credit score.
— Tommie Owen
TR workshop to give tips on how to manage stress
Stress can affect everyone mentally and physically, TR students were told in a workshop April 6.
The first step toward reducing the impact of stress is to realize how it makes the body feel, TR reading assistant professor Christi BlueFeather said during The Power of Stress.
Stress is a normal part of life. People have to think of things they can do to help their bodies calm down, BlueFeather said.
“Sometimes we can be in drive or we can be in overdrive,” she said. “Learn to be in neutral.”
When stressed, students may experience an increase or decrease in energy, trouble sleeping, excessive worry, increase in irritability and difficulty communicating or listening, BlueFeather said. Prolonged stress can cause negative effects to the body like high blood pressure, heart disease, digestive problems, headaches and depression.
“Our bodies are smart, and they talk to us,” she said.
Students should learn to be in a mindset that allows them to handle stress when it comes their way. Knowing the source of stress is a step ahead in getting rid of it, BlueFeather said. Other methods students can practice include breathing techniques, mindfulness and meditation.
“The breath is a very powerful tool,” she said. “Always inhale up and exhale down.”
Mindfulness is a way to feel fully aware and in tune with one’s thoughts and surroundings. Meditation is allowing oneself to focus on what one is doing, BlueFeather said.
“It’s OK to slow down when life stresses us out,” she said. “It’s called being human.”
— Tori Loudenback
World War II survivor to share story
A number of unimaginable atrocities have occurred throughout human history, but one that stands out above the rest is the Holocaust.
Paul Kessler, a survivor of a Nazi invasion, will share his story 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. April 14 in the Michael Saenz Conference Center (WACB 1123) on NW Campus.
When Kessler was 5 years old, the Nazis invaded his native Slovakia. Farmers hid him and his mother, saving their lives. Now a speaker for the Dallas Holocaust Museum, he aims to show what humanity is capable of when it gives into hate.
Through the Holocaust is being hosted by Bridge the Gap, a NW student Christian organization.
Club vice president Candy Hernandez is passionate about the values that Bridge the Gap promotes and is excited about impacting the lives of others.
“Our whole goal is to attain oneness with different denominations and other groups on campus,” she said, mentioning the LGBT community, the Catholic club, and Focus, another Christian club on campus.
Bridge the Gap hopes to “show the love of Christ by working together” and to “promote love and community and unity” by connecting with as many people as possible, Hernandez said.
Other events that Bridge the Gap has been involved with since its inception in 2015 include See You at the Pole and food drives.
Bridge the Gap meets every Thursday 11 a.m.-noon in the NW Student Center.
— Zach Gierisch
