Suicides Tied To Military Life Hits Homefront

Growing number of suicides among military members hits home
TMJ NBC News
By Bridget Shanahan
CREATED Nov 7, 2014

MILWAUKEE -- This afternoon, for the first time, TODAY'S TMJ4 is learning the details behind a local soldier's death.

19-year-old Lance Corporal Jeremiah Collins killed himself while he was in Afghanistan. And just days before Veterans Day, this information highlights a growing problem with suicide among our military members.

"Unfortunately, [suicide] is a lot more common than a lot of people think," said Mark Flower, who works with veterans at Dryhooch, a non-profit organization.

Flower said every day 22 veterans take their own lives. That's a suicide every hour and a half.

"Sad. I don't know how else to say that it's just sad," he said. "Folks that more or less give that extreme act of service and then that come home, and then sometimes it seems like we failed them."

According to a military report obtained by TODAY'S TMJ4, Collins committed suicide by shooting himself while serving in Afghanistan last year.
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