Hands of Hope works to prevent suicide and strengthen mental health in Springfield — through education, honest conversation and support that reaches people long before a crisis does. No one faces it alone.
Suicide is preventable. We work upstream — teaching people the warning signs, making it ordinary to ask for help, and standing with families through the hardest days.
Education & awareness
Workshops, seminars and community outreach that replace myth with fact, reduce the stigma around mental illness, and make it normal to talk about mental health out loud.
Support & connection
Support groups for people in emotional distress and for families affected by suicide — plus direct connection to mental health professionals and local resources.
Training & advocacy
We train community members in suicide prevention, crisis response and mental health first aid, and advocate for better access to quality mental health care for all.
How support reaches someone
From a first conversation to steady ground
01
Someone reaches out
You, or someone worried about you. By phone, by text, or through our Get help form. No diagnosis, no referral and no need for the right words.
02
A real person responds
Within 72 hours a member of our team listens — without judgment and without rushing you. If tonight is the problem, the 988 Lifeline answers 24/7.
03
We connect you to the right support
A mental health professional, a support group, a community resource — or all three, matched to what you actually need.
04
We stay alongside
Recovery is not a single appointment. We check in, and the door stays open for as long as you want it open.
Know the signs
If you're worried about someone
Most people who are struggling give some sign of it. You don't have to be a professional to notice, and you don't have to have the answer — you only have to ask, and stay.
What to look for
What they say
Talking about being a burden, being trapped, having no reason to keep going, or saying goodbye in a way that feels final.
What they do
Withdrawing from people, giving away things that matter to them, sleeping far more or far less, drinking or using more than usual.
How they seem
A heavy, prolonged low — or a sudden calm after one. Agitation, rage, or a flatness that isn't like them.
What's happened
A loss, a diagnosis, a breakup, a job gone, humiliation. Especially where there's been a previous attempt.
How to ask
01
Ask directly
“Are you thinking about suicide?” Plainly, in those words. Asking does not plant the idea — research is consistent on this. It gives someone permission to say yes.
02
Listen without fixing
Don't argue, don't rush to solutions, don't tell them what they have to be grateful for. Being heard without judgment is the thing that helps.
03
Make it safer
Ask whether they have a plan or a means to hand, and help put distance between them and it. Time and distance save lives.
04
Connect them
Call or text 988 together. Help them make an appointment. Go with them if you can — a warm handover beats a phone number on a napkin.
05
Follow up
Check back in a day or two, and again after that. Staying in contact measurably reduces risk. It is the easiest step and the one most often skipped.
The one thing to unlearn
Asking someone directly about suicide does not put the idea in their head. That belief keeps people silent, and silence is what the risk feeds on. Ask the question.
Hands of Hope Charity is a Springfield organization built by people from the community it serves. We work where prevention actually happens — in schools, workplaces, clinics and congregations — so that the people most likely to notice someone struggling know what to say next.
Mission
To empower individuals and families through suicide prevention, mental health education, advocacy and compassionate support. We raise awareness, connect people with life-saving resources, foster resilience, and build communities where every person feels valued, supported and hopeful.
Vision
A community where mental health is openly discussed, suicide is preventable, every individual has access to compassionate support, and every person is inspired to choose hope, healing and recovery.
Who we are
Dedan MainaTreasurer
Fijerique Koffi-TessoSecretary
Karina Dise, Katishia Gallishaw, Daniel Kinuthia, Serge Koffi-TessoBoard of Directors
Hope
We believe every life has value and every person deserves hope.
Compassion
We serve with empathy, kindness and respect.
Integrity
We are honest, ethical and accountable.
Education
Knowledge saves lives and empowers communities.
Inclusion
Everyone deserves dignity, acceptance and support.
Collaboration
We work together with community partners to maximize our impact.
Advocacy
We champion policies and services that improve mental health care and suicide prevention.
Impact
What the last year looked like
1,850
people trained in prevention
62
workshops & community sessions
310
support-group meetings held
1,140
connections to professional care
Education & awareness
The question people learn to ask
A ninety-minute session in a high school staff room ends with every teacher able to name the warning signs — and willing to ask the direct question instead of hoping they are wrong.
Support & connection
A room where it can be said out loud
Our groups meet weekly: some for people carrying more than they can hold alone, some for families bereaved by suicide. Most people arrive certain they are the only one in the room who feels this way.
Training & advocacy
Someone nearby who knew what to say
A trained volunteer noticed a colleague going quiet, asked plainly, stayed on the phone and walked him to the appointment. Two years on, he trains other people to do the same.
“I thought asking for help would prove something was wrong with me. Somebody sat with me until I made the call, and then came to the first appointment. I'm still here, and most days that feels ordinary now.”
Zeffy is free for charities like ours, so every dollar of your gift reaches us. They cover the card fees and ask donors for an optional contribution to Zeffy at checkout — it is entirely optional, and you can set it to $0 without affecting your donation.
Hands of Hope is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Gifts are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.
In-kind
Practical support that keeps the programs running:
Meeting space for evening support groups
Printing of resource cards & workshop materials
Refreshments for sessions and training days
Projectors, screens & sound equipment
Professional time: counseling, design, translation
Transport for outreach teams
Talk to us before you buy anything — the most useful gift is usually the one we were about to pay for.
You don't need a diagnosis, a referral or the right words. Tell us what's happening and a real person will get back to you within 72 hours. This form is not monitored around the clock — if you need someone right now, use the lines below.
Need someone right now?
988 Suicide & Crisis LifelineCall or text 98824/7, free and confidential, anywhere in the US
Crisis Text LineText HOME to 74174124/7 text support with a trained crisis counselor
Emergency servicesCall 911If someone is in immediate physical danger
These lines are staffed around the clock by trained counselors. You can call for yourself, or for someone you're worried about.
This form reaches our team, not a crisis line. If you need someone right now, call or text 988 — don’t wait for a reply.
There's no wrong reason to reach out.
What you tell us stays with our small team.
Asking for help is not weakness. It's how this works.
What happens next
01
You send this form
Only the basics. Skip anything you'd rather say on the phone.
02
We get back to you
Within 72 hours, a real person from our team — not a machine.
03
We work out what would help
Together. A counselor, a group, a resource — or just someone to talk it through with.
04
We stay in touch
For as long as it's useful to you. You set the pace.
Hands of Hope
Every life has value, and every person deserves hope. Help us make sure no one faces it alone.
