News & Events

Emma Benoit is a powerful and engaging motivational speaker,
whose miraculous story and message of hope inspires audiences of all ages. 

Emma Benoit became extremely passionate about suicide prevention after surviving a suicide attempt in 2017, the summer before her senior year in high school. At the time, she was a popular varsity cheerleader with a supportive family and lots of friends, but on the inside, she was filled with depression and anxiety, and had never told a soul about it.  Her attempt resulted in a spinal cord injury that left her paralyzed but helped her find faith and purpose; and propelled her on a mission to use her painful experience and miraculous recovery to help others.

Emma serves as an Ambassador for LivingWorks, the world’s leader in suicide prevention training and in December of 2020, Emma was a featured guest on Jada Pinkett Smith’s hit show “Red Table Talk”; and she has also been featured on numerous other news programs and podcasts.

The Helpline Center is honored to bring Emma to Sioux Falls, thanks to our partnership and the generous donors of The 437 Project.

To learn more, and register head to: www.helplinecenter.org/emma

The Helpline Center is celebrating the one year anniversary of 988, a direct connection to compassionate, accessible care and support for anyone experiencing mental health-related distress. 988 is available 24/7 to provide help and hope for people having thoughts of suicide, a mental health or substance use crisis, or any other kind of emotional distress.

988 launched on July 16, 2022, and since then more than 7, 500 people have called, texted, and chatted with 988 Mental Health Counselors. When South Dakotans call, text or chat 988, they are connected to trained crisis counselors at the Helpline Center who listen to concerns, provide support, connect to additional resources and provide follow up care.

A few highlights from the last year:

• 988 counselors have connected with a wide range of people from across the age spectrum from 12 years to 80 years and have talked with people from every county in the state.
• We’ve supported people struggling with deep grief, addictions and those in need of a comforting and listening ear, along with folks who are struggling to just get through the day.
• One of our callers recently said, “Thank you for being here to listen when it feels like nobody else would be”.
• We recently heard back from one of our callers through a friend that described the 988 service, “They are my angels. They saved my life and now I’m getting help. They really do care.”

In South Dakota, 988 is a partnership between the Helpline Center and the South Dakota Department of Social Services – Division of Behavioral Health. Both entities remain steadfast in our work to provide help and hope to individuals when it’s needed most. Please join us in sharing this important information about 988 and together we can continue to reduce the stigma surrounding mental health and addiction.

Each year more than 48,000 people die in the United State by suicide, leaving thousands of parents, siblings, wives, husbands, sons, daughters and friends to survive the tragic loss. The Helpline Center has offered support to those bereaved by suicide loss since 1999 and now, thanks to funds raised through The 437 Project, we’re able to expand how we can meet individuals in their grief.

We’re happy to announce the launch of a new website designed with the goal of providing hope and help to even more suicide loss survivors. There are many new features on the site and we encourage you to take a look and help us spread the word!

Healing After a Suicide Loss booklet
In Remembrance page
Resource Library

In addition to the website and resources, we will begin offering a virtual support group online on the 3rd Wednesday of each month via Zoom.  We truly want to support individuals across South Dakota and we hope these new opportunities will provide just that.

To learn more about our survivor resources or our virtual support group, please email griefsupport@helplinecenter.org.

The Helpline Center is offering several mental health and suicide prevention trainings.

Mental Health First Aid: teaches you how to identify, understand, and respond to the signs of mental health and substance use challenges in adults.

November 30, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. (In-person)

Youth Mental Health First Aid: teaches you how to identify, understand, and respond to the signs of mental health and substance use challenges in youth (ages 6-28).

December 13, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. (In-person)

Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR): teaches you how to recognize the warning signs of suicide, how to offer hope, and how to help save a life.

December 8, 18:30 a.m. (In-person)
December 8, 12:00 p.m. (Virtual)

To register for any of these trainings, click here.

The annual open enrollment period for health insurance is November 1 – January 15. Through Get Covered South Dakota, our navigator can assist individuals with finding affordable health insurance.

Whether you have a question about health insurance, need help applying on the Health Insurance Marketplace, or want someone to help you find the right plan, our health insurance navigator is here to support you. Call us at 211!

NEW 988 t-shirts!
We have a new shirt and a new message to celebrate the one-year anniversary of 988. The t-shirts are priced at cost plus shipping. Bella Canvas brand, unisex sizing and the color is heather blue lagoon.  Click on the link below to purchase! If you’d like to place a bulk order of 8 t-shirts or more, please email us at marketing@helplinecenter.org.

helplinecenter.org/988shirts

Nearly three of every five home fire deaths occur in households with no smoke alarms (41 percent) or no working smoke alarms (16 percent). According to Fire Inspector Brandon Fey, Sioux Falls Fire Rescue (SFFR), every second counts when a fire breaks out. “Studies show a fire can double in size every minute.”

The first line of defense? Smoke alarms.

October 11 and October 13, SFFR will conduct a Sound the Alarm event during Fire Prevention Week. SFFR aims to prevent loss of life by ensuring City residents have up-to-date smoke and carbon monoxide alarms. SFFR invites individuals and families within City limits to request alarms and installation free of charge.

Requests can be made by calling the Helpline Center at 211, after which SFFR will contact callers to schedule an installation time on October 11 or 13, or a later date if neither of those work.

SFFR and other City employees will install the alarms provided in partnership with the American Red Cross.

Fey also urges residents to replace alarms that have been in service for more than ten years. “Over time, they get coated with household dust and debris, which can cause an alarm malfunction at the time of a fire,” Fey explains.

Sound the Alarm! Share information about this opportunity widely with family and friends. There’s no better time than Fire Prevention Week.

Sioux Falls Fire Rescue is partnering with other city departments for a Sound the Alarm event on October 11th and 13th. This event will take place during fire prevention week, October 9th-15th. If you need a smoke or carbon monoxide alarm, please call us at 211 and we will get you scheduled.

The Volunteer Engagement Training Program (VETP) is an in-person, 3-day series (Sept 27, Oct 4, Oct 11) from 9:00am-12:30pm CT each session.

Registration Fee: $35 (covers cost of materials)

Are you new to managing volunteers? Do you want to build a stronger, more effective volunteer program? Volunteer Management Training will help you better manage volunteers for more effective results! Increase volunteer recruitment, retention and productivity.

The curriculum includes the following six courses:

Module 1: Establishing the Framework

Module 2: Planning for Volunteer Engagement

Module 3: Opportunities & Outreach

Module 4: Intake & Onboarding

Module 5: Supervision & Support

Module 6: Evaluation

Contact Jennie Marks at (605) 274-1407 or jennie.marks@helplinecenter.org to learn more.