By Cathy Kimmel-Srock
Review Staff Writer
When Jeremiah Hargett passed away in November, 2011, from death by suicide, his mom, Mary Reyes, felt blindsided and like she was the only person in the world experiencing this type of situation.
“When it happened, it was like I was the only one on the planet at that point,” Reyes explained. “Now, I know better.”
Now, she is using that grief for something beautiful that not only honors her son but also helps to educate the community about mental illness and suicide, breaking down the stigmas associated with both.
Jeremiah, or Miah as he was known, was an avid runner, and Saturday, Aug. 13 marks the fifth annual Miah Mile to benefit Common Ground.
The event, which started as a way for Miah’s cross country teammates and friends to honor him under the leadership of Coach Stan Ford, has grown into a free community event with the purpose of raising awareness, knowledge and funds.
“The ironic thing is his name is Jeremiah, but he was raised up being called Miah,” his mom explained. “(MIAH) now represents Mental Illness Awareness & Hope, and that’s kind of what we base all this on – for the awareness and education about mental illness awareness and hope.”
“And then it’s the mile, which was his specialty,” Reyes added. “It kind of all came full circle.”
According to Reyes, Miah, who was a 2009 graduate of Lake Orion High School, initially started running as a way to stay in shape for soccer.
“Once he got on the track and cross country teams, he was just phenomenal and just kind of found out that was something that he was pretty good at,” said Reyes, explaining that his running lead to a full scholarship for cross country at Oakland Community College. A plan to move to Oakland University, who was picking him up for a full scholarship, was in the works, but according to Reyes, Miah didn’t make it there.
“He got hit with the mental illness pretty hard and it kind of took all that from him,” she said.
Reyes describes feeling “blindsided” by her son’s illness and realizing she was not very educated about it, which prompted her desire in being able to use her voice to help raise awareness and “work towards ending stigmas surrounding mental illness and suicide.”
“Any illness that has the ability to claim a life in any way should not be stigmatized and its individuals stereotyped,” said Reyes. “It’s to restore dignity to those that have lost their lives in this way.”
The event is free and open to the community. People do not need to register but can just show up to participate. The monies that are raised for Common Ground are done so through donations and t-shirts that are for sale at the event.
“T-shirts will be sold as our way of raising money for Common Ground, a non-profit organization designed to help those with various mental health issues, suicide prevention outreach and support for loved ones,” Reyes said.
Reyes is hoping people use the event for not only education and awareness but also to realize there are others experiencing similar things as them.
“I welcome anyone who comes that has had a similar experience and allow them to at least know they are not alone,” she added.
As part of the walk, Reyes said they will also be having a balloon memorial.
“Not only to remember Jeremiah but to remember all those that we know that have passed due to suicide,” she added.
The Miah Mile will be held on Saturday, Aug. 13 from 10 a.m. until noon at the LOHS track, which is located on Stadium Drive.