COUDERSPORT – Teen Tinnitus returned to the Coudersport
Consistory auditorium Saturday with music, dancing and
testimonials.

More than 500 teens and about 50 adults turned out to hear Fool
Hardy, Brookland, Brittany Garrison, Custom Gauge, Sandlot Heroes
and, in a rollicking finale, recording artist and touring band
Navar.

“Things went very well,” said Potter County Judge John Leete,
one of the driving forces behind the Potter County Yellow Ribbon
Suicide Prevention program.

The event was billed by Yellow Ribbon as “a celebration of life
and music.”

Between musical acts, several young people who had overcome
personal obstacles or suffered the consequences of risky behavior
shared testimony and messages of hope.

Potter County Commissioner Cathy Bowers and her husband, Merv,
were among the volunteers who were on hand to supervise and
chaperone.

“It’s loud, but it’s something positive for the kids,” Bowers
said as she stood next to the stage as Navar pounded out its
high-energy opening selection. “The Yellow Ribbon campaign is one
of Potter County’s success story. We’ve brought all of these kids
together for something they enjoy and we haven’t had a bit of
trouble.”

Leete pointed out that the program has become a model for other
Pennsylvania counties.

Potter County brought together community leaders, schools, law
enforcement, clergy, mental health professionals and others to
launch Yellow Ribbon in 2003, in response to three teen
suicides.

“It’s hard for us as parents to accept the reality that more
kids die from suicide than cancer, heart disease, lung disease and
AIDS combined,” Leete pointed out. “Rural youth are particularly at
risk.

“When a teen suicide occurs, the impact on family, friends,
school and community are devastating,” he continued. “Because there
is so much pain involved, we become reluctant to discuss it. That
is why teen suicide is the great unspoken American tragedy.”

Leete commended Cameron County for its recent adoption of a
program similar to Yellow Ribbon, called “Signs of Suicide”
(SOS).

Although Saturday’s event focused on young people, Leete said
it’s important for parents and other adults to be vigilant.

“Discussion is only part of the answer,” he noted. “It does no
good to teach kids to ask for help if help is not available. We
must have quality and accessible counseling and mental health
services.”