Interview: Lynda Jacob, Luxembourg Charities on Message Behind Darkness into Light

Chronicle.lu recently caught up with Lynda Jacob, a member of the organising committee of Darkness into Light Luxembourg, to discuss the origins and objectives of this international charity walk, as well as this year’s updated format; the event will take place this Saturday 7 May 2022.

The story of Darkness into Light began in 2009 when 400 people departed Phoenix Park in Dublin, Ireland as part of the inaugural 5 km fundraising walk organised by Pieta House, an Irish charity that supports people impacted by suicide or self-harm. Today, the event takes place in over 200 venues across five continents.

First Darkness into Light Luxembourg event

Speaking to Chronicle.lu, Lynda Jacob, who organises the Luxembourg event together with Emma Farrell (Chairperson) and Caoimhe Alliot-Stenson, explained that she had first heard about Darkness into Light from her friend Sarah Ironside, who launched the first Brussels event in May 2018. The latter put Ms Jacob in contact with Emma Farrell and Caoimhe Alliot-Stenson, who were enquiring about how to launch their own event in Luxembourg. The three women got together in June 2018 to plan a potential Luxembourg event for 2019. Ms Ironside supported them throughout the process. “She had been through it in Brussels where […] it was unknown”, noted Ms Jacob.

Lynda Jacob pointed out that it is mandatory for venues abroad to work with at least one local charity. The Luxembourg organisers thus contacted the Ministry of Health and reached out to their own contacts in the European institutions, including Commission Director of Public Health John Ryan. In the first year, they had the patronage of the European Commissioner for Health, who had walked at the 2018 Brussels event.

On the suggestion of Mr Ryan, they reached out to D’Ligue, a Luxembourgish mental health non-profit organisation, as well as the SOS Détresse helpline. The charities, which had not heard of the event initially but later agreed to join, first had to be vetted and audited by Pieta House – a process that is repeated every year. Following their approval, Lynda Jacob, Emma Farrell and Caoimhe Alliot-Stenson worked together with the support of fellow volunteers to launch the first Darkness into Light Luxembourg on Saturday 11 May 2019.

Lynda Jacob explained: “All around the world, Darkness into Light is organised by normally Irish people or people with a very close connection to Ireland, and we’re all volunteers”. The Luxembourg organisers typically split the work among themselves as follows: Caoimhe Alliot-Stenson is the contact person for the charities, Emma Farrell is responsible for administration, sponsors and the bank account and Lynda Jacob is in charge of obtaining the required permission from the City of Luxembourg (Ville de Luxembourg - VdL) and the Grand Ducal Police to hold the event in the capital.

All registration goes through Ireland, with people registering for their chosen venue. Ms Jacob explained that half of the money raised through donations and registration fees in 2019 went to Pieta House and the other half was split directly among the selected local charities. Just before the 2019 event, another Luxembourgish charity, Kanner-Jugendtelefon (KJT), reached out to the organisers and expressed an interest in setting up a stand at the event. KJT has since become one of the official partner charities.

The first year’s event started and finished at the Altrimenti Cultural Centre in Luxembourg City. The venue had a capacity of 300 to 350 people. However, the evening before the inaugural event, the organisers asked Pieta House to shut down registrations for Luxembourg on the website because they had already reached 530 people. In the end, 420 people of different nationalities showed up despite the heavy rain. “That was a real success and the charities were delighted”, noted Lynda Jacob. Among the participants was then Irish Ambassador to Luxembourg Peadar Carpenter. The first event raised €33,000, split between Pieta House in Ireland and the Service Information et Prévention of D’Ligue and SOS Détresse in Luxembourg.

COVID-19 pandemic

In February 2020, the organisers held a launch event for the second edition of Darkness into Light Luxembourg, which now included KJT as a third official partner charity. Then the COVID-19 pandemic hit and events were cancelled worldwide. Various unofficial walks were held six months later to mark the event. In 2021, the situation varied around the world, with some countries under stricter lockdown restrictions than others. Consequently, Pieta House opted for a virtual event adapted to the situation in different countries. In Luxembourg, participants were allowed to walk in groups of ten. 250 people signed up for this virtual walk on Saturday 8 May 2021, which raised €9,000.

2022 edition

“Then it was touch and go for this year”, stated Lynda Jacob. Preparations began in autumn 2021, with the organisers booking the Hall Omnisport (a bigger venue than in 2019) in Luxembourg-Clausen in October. The 5 km group walk takes participants through Luxembourg City.

This year, because people “really enjoyed the possibility to walk in their own area”, Pieta House decided to keep this option. Participants can now choose between joining the organised group walk, which departs from the sports hall in Clausen at 05:00 (sunrise) on Saturday 7 May 2022, doing it their own way (wherever and whenever they wish) or taking a challenge, for instance one Luxembourgish woman plans to run 10 km in Cologne, Germany. So far, 334 people have signed up for the 2022 Luxembourg event, including 275 for the group walk. Numbers are slightly down globally, partly because people remain reluctant to get together in a group – hence the inclusion of the “do it your own way” option. All proceeds from this event will go to D’Ligue, SOS Détresse and KJT.

Registration remains open (https://www.darknessintolight.ie/) until the evening of Friday 6 May 2022, although latecomers are also welcome to join on the day and “just put a donation in the box”, explained Lynda Jacob. The main goal is to “combat this stigma surrounding suicide and mental health and to raise awareness”. She noted that there are around 70 to 80 suicides per year in Luxembourg (2019/20 figures), adding that around 80% of suicides are believed to be preventable. She recalled the importance of knowing about existing resources, such as the SOS Détresse and KJT helplines in Luxembourg. She also added that a lot of people taking part in Darkness into Light have lost family members to suicide. “This is why it resonates with so many people. They all know somebody”.

How the money is used

Chronicle.lu also reached out to representatives of D’Ligue, SOS Détresse and KJT to learn more about what inspired them to join Darkness into Light Luxembourg and how they use the money raised by the charity walk.

D’Ligue

Melissa Da Silva, head of communications at D’Ligue’s Centre d’Information et Prévention, explained that the event organisers had contacted them directly when they were looking for organisations active in suicide prevention. “That's how we became aware of the action. We then looked into the history of Darkness into Light and were immediately enthusiastic about the concept”, she noted. “We also liked the message behind this action. It is a sign of hope and shows those affected that they are not alone. There is light against the dark”.

Commenting on what makes such initiatives important, Ms Da Silva said: “First of all, we are convinced that such actions can be an effective tool to prevent suicides. Such actions draw attention to important issues and at the same time raise awareness among the general population”. She continued: “They also give hope. They draw attention to the work of important organisations and show that the problem is not simply accepted. There are offers of help and there are people who are willing to do something about it. Finally, we find that actions like Darkness into light can be a wonderful opportunity for those affected to come together and share their experiences”.

In terms of where the money raised by Darkness into Light goes, D’Ligue uses this “to finance the work of our association in the field of suicide prevention. For example, the translation of information material or the organisation of other prevention activities”.

SOS Détresse

Dr Jessica Levy, a psychologist who is also is in charge of training new volunteers in English at SOS Détresse, first explained that “SOS Détresse is there to offer help to people who need someone to talk to, be it in acute or more long-term crises, for clarification on a certain topic, or any other subject you would like to discuss with someone – no issue is too small. By calling or writing to us, you can get anonymous support in a conversation with our empathetic volunteer listeners and writers”.

Concerning how and why SOS Détresse got involved in Darkness into Light Luxembourg, Dr Levy stated: “When we at SOS Détresse were approached by the committee members of DILL [Darkness into Light Luxembourg], it was very clear to us that we want to get involved and support such an important event, the first of its kind in Luxembourg. DILL represents the same values that we at SOS Détresse think are of utmost importance within the area of mental health awareness and suicide prevention. By showing that no one needs to stay alone with their feelings and that there is no taboo in mental health topics, DILL brings hope and comfort to those people who suffer from mental health issues or have been impacted by the topic of suicide”.

Regarding the importance of such events, she explained: “We at SOS Détresse believe that such events are incredibly important to raise awareness about mental health and suicide prevention. By using a strong symbolic setting, moving from the darkness into light, such events allow to get together in a very warm atmosphere, where it is possible to feel the importance of not staying alone with your thoughts and feelings. At the same time, such events make it possible to get to know the different institutions that can offer support for mental health issues in an informal setting. SOS Détresse will also be present at DILL – we will walk with you and you can also get to know more about us after the walk”.

Dr Levy also explained that the money raised by Darkness into Light Luxembourg “will be used within the training and supervision of our new English-speaking volunteers”. She elaborated: “With the aim to be available to those people who feel more comfortable to have conversations in English, we started to train volunteers in English for the first time in September 2021. This will allow us to be available to people who would like to talk to us in English in the future. The money raised by DILL plays an important role in ensuring the quality of the training and supervision of our English-speaking volunteers. For example, high quality translations of our material and the possibility of external experts to join the team of course instructors and supervisors allow our volunteers to be well prepared and supported for their valuable work as listeners”.

KJT

Speaking on behalf of KJT, Executive Director Barbara Gorges-Wagner explained that “KJT is an organisation that has been offering counselling for 30 years: telephone, online and chat counselling. We try to reach people, especially children and young people, but also parents who have worries, who have problems, who are in crisis”. She continued: “Our heart's desire is to signal to young people that we are there for them when things are going badly and they are having suicidal thoughts. ‘Don't stay alone’ is our slogan, we are here for you”.

“Darkness into Light is a particularly important event that helps to de-taboo the issue of suicidality. The public learns that there are many people who put an end to their lives, unfortunately also a lot of young people”, Ms Gorges-Wagner added. “In total in 2021, we dealt with 106 young people at our services who came to us because of suicidal thoughts, and 69 more whose subject was self-harming behaviour. Through Darkness into Light, more people learn about the problem and more people in crisis become aware of services like ours, which operate anonymously and confidentially, where everyone is welcome”.

She concluded by explaining that KJT uses the money raised mainly for outreach, “as our services are only as effective as they are known”.