5-3-19 fdl woman helping raise awareness about veteran suicides

A Fond du Lac woman is working to bring awareness about the problem of veteran suicides.  Each day 20 veterans, service members, reservists and members of the National Guard die by suicide, totaling more than 7,300 deaths per year.  In Fond du Lac Brittani Woods’  brother,  Brandon Michael Van Asten,  took his life last summer.  Van Asten was a Marine veteran who suffered from Post Traumatic Stress and Brittany is helping to organize the Brandon Michael Memorial Ruck in her brother’s honor and to raise awareness about this issue.   Woods says proceeds will be used to fund a program called NAMI Homefront…a six week course on PTSD for loved ones and family members of military service members to help them learn how to support them and access services.   At her brother’s funeral Woods says she talked about how Brandon was broken from the inside out.  “With PTSD he could not be in large crowds, so that really affected his ability to be out in the community,”  Woods told WFDL news.  “Loud noises really bothered him.  He always had to sit in the back of the room facing the front so he could see all the exits.  A lot of anxiety just to live and get through his day.”  Woods says its important to have more open and honest conversations to break the stigma that seeking help is a weakness.    The Memorial Ruck Walk is scheduled for May 25 at Lakeside Park.