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My heart is heavy, my whole body feels heavy. I am sad.

William is the son of our friends. He was a young man in his early 20s. He was handsome, sporty, personable, well educated, and utterly charming. He was the sort of guy you’d want to come home with your daughter. But this weekend Will ended his life.

As a teenager he developed a problem with alcohol, and then alcohol and drugs. With the support of his family he agreed that something must be done about his problem. He visited Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), accepted he had a problem and over the last few years, has fought valiantly against his problems. He hasn’t been on his own doing this. His family have been right with him on this journey. His step-father Richard has loved and supported Will as if each hour were the last. Every day Richard has driven Will to his AA meeting, sometimes when on holidays he has driven him four hours just so that they could attend a meeting of support.

Will was so brave.  He was kind. He spoke to groups of impressionable school boys of his problems, urging them, begging them to make the right decisions in life. He helped to change the attitudes of young men. But in the end it was too much for Will.

What can we do? What can we learn? If we see problems what do we do about it? We must spread Will’s story to the impressionable young out there, the young around you. We are all responsible – you and me.

Please don’t write any comments to this message. Just pray for Will and his family – to give them the strength to get through the following days and weeks.