By Mateo Cardace
Purple and teal are colors that may not seem like much on their own, but together they become powerful, carrying a message of hope, recovery and support.
These are the colors that represent Suicide Prevention Month, which annually takes place in September. They represent mental health awareness, spiritual health and support. They also make up a special shirt that filled the Long Beach boardwalk on Sept. 21 during the Long Island Crisis Center’s’ “Let’s Walk Let’s Talk” event, which raises awareness about mental health and suicide prevention.
On the front was etched one word, “Kari.” On the back, one message appeared, “Always keep fighting!” The message was one that Percy DiTucci, 20, the son of Kari DiTucci, and his family have spread for the past 10 years.
Kari was a wife and mother of three children, who died by suicide on Jan. 9, 2014. Her death left a devastating void for Percy, who was 9 years old at the time, as well as for his brothers, Devin and Sebastian, and his father, Vincent.
“Life was very quiet after. It was just quietly sad, at least for me. Everything stopped. I quit Spanish lessons. I quit the drums. I quit soccer. I quit singing. Everything came to a stop for me,” said Percy when asked what it was like going through the early stages of life without his mother.
This silence — stoppage in life — is one that has become a more common reality across the United States in recent years. In 2014, the year of Kari’s death, 42,826 Americans were lost to suicide, a number that has only grown in the decade since. In 2023, 49,316 Americans died by suicide, the rate per 100,000 going from 13.0 to 14.0, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
After attending “Light up the Night,” a walk in support of their uncle who was battling leukemia at the time, Percy and his family sought a similar way to honor Kari’s memory. Their search brought them to the Long Island Crisis Center, based in Bellmore.
Each September for the past seven years, Percy and his family have taken part in the Long Island Crisis Center’s “Let’s Walk Let’s Talk” suicide prevention walk to honor Kari’s memory and walk with her in spirit. Over the years, they have worn different shirts in her honor.
This year’s rendition had a deeper meaning written all over it, with a sugar skull on the back that connects Percy and his family to Kari, and a fleur-de-lis on the front to honor her trilingualism and her love for her time spent living in Paris. It is a symbol found throughout the family’s home.
At this year’s “Let’s Walk Let’s Talk” event, held Sept. 21, the shirt was given out to anyone willing to support their story, and the event quickly became filled with a swath of purple.
The event is a fundraiser held almost exclusively at the Long Beach boardwalk, which has been ongoing every September since 2009. Its goal is to raise suicide awareness and serve as a reminder that no one walks alone.
The Long Island Crisis Center raised more than $75,000 at this year’s “Let’s Walk Let’s Talk” event. The money will go to support local communities, but perhaps the greatest impact came from the continued spreading of awareness.
“Raising awareness is probably the most important thing,” said LICC Associate Executive Director Tawni Engel. “It’s talking about this somber topic in a way that is very open and honest. There are resources out there like us that help. We don’t wanna brush it under the rug, we don’t wanna say that it doesn’t exist, we don’t wanna think of it as a taboo subject that you can’t touch or can’t talk about.”
Spreading awareness is one of the many benefits an event like this can bring to the friends and families of those who have died by suicide. It is also a powerful way of telling their stories.
Resting against the stairs at the entrance to the walk was the wall of remembrance. It contained the stories of several families who have experienced grief and loss, including notes, photos and funeral cards. Past remembrance notes left by the DiTucci family over the years were also displayed there.
Kari’s story was one of many told at the event, but it served as a light for anyone who has experienced — or is still experiencing — the unimaginable loss that is suicide. Its powerful message of healing led to the DiTucci family being named the walk’s 2025 Persons of the Year.
“We do this because the Long Island Crisis Center gives so much to the community, and to be honored in that way is so special to my family,” Percy said.
