Food For Thought; Help Is Out There 

Food for Thought
As a vendor of the Salt Lake Farmers Market (SLFM) for the past 19 years, we know firsthand the hard work and dedication it takes to participate and put the market together. We have always believed in having a garden for our family's well being, and have enjoyed sharing organic fruits and vegetables with others at reasonable prices.

While there are people who take deceptive shortcuts to bring commercial produce to market ["Faux Food," July 10, City Weekly] there are far more honest, hard working farmers doing things the right way that rely on the SLFM for income. The fact that over 80 farmers doing it the right way have booths at the SLFM is a remarkable expression of people's desire for fresh, organic, locally grown produce.

To run a market of this size takes a lot of organization and dedication, so we should focus on the positives the market has to offer Salt Lake and not the occasional bad apple.

Clarification: The photo that ran with "Faux Food" [July 10, City Weekly] was intended to serve as a generic illustration of the Downtown Farmers Market. Any vendors, booths or customers pictured were not part of the article.

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Help Is Out There
As the article "Broken Wings" [July 10, City Weekly] mentioned, Hill Air Force Base does offer multiple programs to our personnel.

In today's Air Force, leaders have adopted the Wingman concept not only among pilots, but for every Airman—military and civilian. Our people are our most important asset in meeting our Air Force mission, and we do more than pay lip service through our Wingman Advocate Program in watching out for each other.

Some of our wellness programs include our Wingman Advocate Program, Occupational Medicine Services, Employee Assistance Program, Military One Source, Air Force Suicide Prevention, Military Pathways, climate assessments and Civilian Health Promotion Services.

Team Hill's 10 Wingman Advocate personnel provide around-the-clock service for civilian employees, with information and referrals for on- and off-base services and resources for issues such as work, personal, marital, family stressors, financial stressors and substance abuse. Our Wingman Advocates are vital to our employees and have assisted more than 1,990 employees this year alone.

Hill AFB's chaplains also provide a spiritual dimension to family support, traumatic-stress management, medical, and quality of life programs for military and civilian employees. Chaplains provide individual, marital, and family counseling services and can offer absolute, confidential communication.

Our keys to suicide prevention are community-based awareness and establishing a culture that promotes early help-seeking and support for those who ask for help. Hill participated in Ogden and Layton suicide awareness and prevention town hall meetings, and held one in June specifically for the Team Hill workforce to encourage dialogue on this issue.

Studies show that suicide is not the result of a single factor or event. It is usually caused by a complex interaction of many factors, such as physical illness, substance abuse, family disturbances, financial problems, interpersonal conflicts, mental illness and other life stressors, which differ for each individual.

Employee resiliency remains a top priority of Air Force and Team Hill leadership, and we remain committed to doing everything possible to save lives. We do not want any employee to feel that suicide is their only recourse and encourage our employees to reach out and seek early help and support—either for themselves or for their fellow workers.