Eddie's Angels is a team that participates in walks to raise money for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP). The team was formed by Ann Marie and Sharon Schortemeyer after their father attempted suicide in 2007, suffering brain damage. They hope to raise awareness about suicide and mental illness through the walks and their annual Shining Light of Hope Benefit. Funds raised support research, education, and resources to prevent suicide and help those impacted by the loss of someone to suicide. Suicide is a serious public health problem in the U.S., resulting in over 33,000 deaths each year.

1. Dedicated to P.O. Box 3114
Preventing Suicide & Sag Harbor, NY 11963
Raising Awareness www.EddiesAngels.com
To Whom It May Concern:
• A life is lost to suicide every 16 minutes in the United States – that’s 90 Americans a day.
• In 2007 there were 34,598 reported suicide deaths.
• Suicide is the 3rd leading cause of death among 15 to 24 year olds and the 2nd leading
cause of death among college students.
• Most Americans remain unaware that suicide is a national health problem.
We are contacting local businesses to assist in an upcoming local benefit for the American
Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP). AFSP is the leading national not-for-profit
organization exclusively dedicated to understanding and preventing suicide through research,
education and advocacy, and reaching out to people with mental disorders and those impacted by
suicide. The goal of our annual benefit is to show support for the families and friends of our
community that have died by suicide, and those who suffer from depression each year. We are
dedicated to erasing the stigma surrounding suicide and its causes, and encouraging those who
are suffering from mental illness to seek treatment.
The 2nd Annual Shining Light of Hope Benefit hosted by Eddie’s Angels, will be held on
Monday, November 8, 2010 at Edgewater Restaurant in Hampton Bays. All proceeds will
benefit AFSP and all donations are 100% tax deductible. More information about the benefit can
be found at www.eddiesangels.com.
We would greatly appreciate any contribution. We are currently in the process of collecting
donations for our Chinese and Silent Auction and finding sponsors for the upcoming event.
Please find attached a Sponsorship Form along with additional information about Eddie’s Angels
and the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. Please contact Ann Marie with any
questions about AFSP or the Shining Light of Hope Benefit.
Thank you for your time and consideration. We look forward to discussing your participation.
Sincerely,
Ann Marie Schortemeyer
aschor06@yahoo.com
(631) 786-5614

2. Eddie’s Angels Sponsorship
nd
2 Annual Shining Light of Hope Benefit
www.EddiesAngels.com
Bronze Sponsor ~ $100 Donation
• Listed in event’s brochure on Bronze Sponsor Page
• Listed on Eddie’s Angels website as Bronze Sponsor
Silver Sponsor ~ $250 Donation
• Listed in event’s brochure on Silver Sponsor Page
• Listed on Eddie’s Angels website as Silver Sponsor with link to company website
• “Sponsorship Spotlight” review on website (150 word max)
• 1 Ticket to 2nd Annual Shining Light of Hope Benefit
Gold Sponsor ~ $500 Donation
• Listed in event’s brochure on Gold Sponsor Page
• Listed on Eddie’s Angels website as Gold Sponsor with link to company website
• “Sponsorship Spotlight” review on website (300 word max)
• Facebook and Twitter Recognition
• Listed in press release (10/10/10 deadline)
• 2 Tickets to 2nd Annual Shining Light of Hope Benefit
Company Name: _______________________________________________________________
Company Contact: ___________________________________ Phone:___________________
Company Address: _____________________________________________________________
City: _________________________________ State: ______ Zip: ___________________
Sponsorship Level: Gold ________ Silver ________ Bronze ________
Type of Donation: Monetary Contribution _______ Chinese or Silent Auction Item _______
Description and Value of Item: ____________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
Please make checks payable to American Foundation for Suicide Prevention
Receipt available for cash donations

3. Publication: The East Hampton Press & The Southampton Press
Sag Harbor woman advocates suicide prevention awareness
By Bryan Finlayson
Two years ago in June, Ann Marie Schortemeyer, 25, was
driving home from work when her aunt phoned with news:
After a suicide attempt, Edwin Schortemeyer, Ann Marie’s
father, a veteran union plumber, was in critical condition at
John T. Mather Memorial Hospital in Port Jefferson.
Confused and distraught, Ms. Schortemeyer, who was living in
Wisconsin at the time, booked a plane ticket to New York and
spent the next 10 days waiting for her 50-year-old father to
wake from a coma.
Mr. Schortemeyer, who attempted suicide by hanging in a
backyard garage at his home in Rocky Point, suffered lasting
brain damage and severe memory loss. He is now under
supervision at Hempstead Park Nursing Home and does not
remember ever trying to commit suicide, his daughter said.
Now, Ms. Schortemeyer, who lives in Sag Harbor, is on a quiet
mission to spread awareness about suicide prevention on Long Island. She and her fund-raising group, Eddie’s Angels,
which has five members, collect donations for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, or AFSP, a nationwide
organization that advocates research into the causes of suicide. To date, they have collected $2,208 for the foundation.
Ms. Schortemeyer is also participating in a suicide awareness walk at the Old Westbury Gardens in Old Westbury on
October 4, about a month after September 10, which is World Suicide Prevention Day.
“I don’t think people realize how big a problem depression and mental illness can be,” Ms. Schortemeyer said last week.
“It can affect anyone. I thought my dad was a happy man, and it turns out he had his own battle with depression.”
The suicide or attempted suicide of a loved one touches the lives of thousands of Americans each year, AFSC Executive
Director Bob Gebbia said. More than 33,000 people in the United States commit suicide each year, and close to a million
attempt suicide, he said.
“If you take the suicides and the attempted suicides and put them together, you can see that this is a serious problem,”
Mr. Gebbia added.
The Old Westbury Gardens walk is expected to raise $125,000 for the AFSP to help fund education and research grants
for suicide prevention, Mr. Gebbia said. The money goes toward research grants for institutions such as Columbia
University, and will help fund investigations into brain chemistry, psychosocial behavior and other symptoms that can lead
to suicide.
In Ms. Schortemeyer’s experience, her father attempted suicide without giving any clear forewarning to his family and
friends. Neither Ms. Schortemeyer or her sister, Sharon, 23, of Lindenhurst, saw any warning signs leading up to the
tragedy. But in retrospect, Ms. Schortemeyer said, there were “a thousand warning signs” that her father was battling
depression, yet “me and my sister didn’t even notice it. It just seemed like a funny phase.”
According to Ms. Schortemeyer, her father, a former Manorville volunteer firefighter and classic car aficionado, was good
humored and a hard worker. He loved his children, and would bring his two daughters boxes with gifts from home on
monthly visits when they were in college, Ms. Schortemeyer said.
However, Mr. Schortemeyer suffered from loneliness and was on medication for depression, Ms. Schortemeyer said.
His second marriage—he married about two weeks before he attempted suicide—was tumultuous, by Ms. Schortemeyer’s
account. “He married a woman he didn’t know too well,” she said.

4. In conversations, Mr. Schortemeyer often complained of money problems and of his daughters being so far away from
home. In 2007, Sharon was attending college in Florida, and Ann Marie was working as an administrative assistant for a
construction company in Wisconsin.
“He just seemed to be complaining a lot about credit card bills and the cost of maintaining a home,” Ms. Schortemeyer
said. “I thought it wasn’t anything that big.”
The night before Mr. Schortemeyer hanged himself, he called Ms. Schortemeyer in Wisconsin and left a voice message to
thank her for a Father’s Day card. “He said he misses me and to please call him soon,” said Ms. Schortemeyer, who found
the message the following day.
The walk in Old Westbury Gardens is one of 190 walks that will occur throughout the country this fall to raise awareness
about suicide prevention. Mr. Gebbia said more than 50,000 people are expected to participate overall.
One of the foundation’s goals is to break the social stigma that keeps people from discussing suicide and mental illness
with others.
“Suicide is something that is not talked about, it is kept in the shadows,” said Mr. Gebbia, noting that symptoms relating to
suicide can be treated with medication and therapy. “Suicide is the result of illness, not the result of character flaws or a
personal weakness.”
Last Updated Sep 8, 09 4:37 PM
mailbag@27east.com ©2010, 27east.com / The Press News Group Ph: 631-287-1500

5. Dedicated to P.O. Box 3114
Preventing Suicide & Sag Harbor, NY 11963
Raising Awareness www.EddiesAngels.com
~ABOUT US~
Eddie’s Angels is a walk team for the Out of the Darkness Community Walk to benefit the
American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP). We will be walking with thousands of
people nationwide to raise money for AFSP’s vital research and education programs to prevent
suicide and save lives, increase national awareness about depression and suicide, and assist
survivors of suicide loss.
The team was formed by Eddie’s daughters, Ann Marie & Sharon for the 2008 Out of the
Darkness Walk. In their third year of participation, the team consists of 6 members hoping only
to grow in future years. Ann Marie & Sharon got involved with AFSP because they were ready to
raise awareness about a topic that needed a voice. Their father attempted suicide on June 19,
2007 by hanging himself. He lost oxygen for approximately 4 – 5 minutes. When he woke up
from a ten day long coma, he was diagnosed with anoxic brain damage. An extremely
independent and hardworking man now requires 24‐hour assistance because no one knew the
warning signs. During the summer of 2008 the sisters experienced 3 additional deaths by
suicide.
In order to create positive from the tragic events, Eddie’s Angels will be hosting the 2nd Annual
Shining Light of Hope Benefit. The benefit is intended to increase awareness within our
community and show support for those that have suffered similar losses.
Eddie’s Angels are helping to support the following by participating in the Out of the
Darkness Community Walk and hosting the 2nd Annual Shining Light of Hope Benefit:
• Research to improve the understanding of factors that contribute to suicide;
• Suicide prevention of college campuses through the dissemination of an educational film;
• National Survivors of Suicide Day conferences;
• Development of national centers that will evaluate the effectiveness of suicide prevention
treatments;
• Creation of new survivor support groups;
• Local suicide prevention programs.
Team Page: http://www.eddiesangels.com
Fundraising Page: http://afsp.donordrive.com/team/eddiesangels

6. The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) is the leading not-for-profit organization exclusively
dedicated to understanding and preventing suicide through research and education, and to reaching out to people with
mood disorders and those impacted by suicide.
To fully achieve its mission, AFSP engages in the following Six Core Strategies:
• Funds scientific research
• Offers educational programs for professionals
• Educates the public about mood disorders and suicide prevention
• Promotes policies and legislation that impact suicide and prevention
• Provides programs and resources for survivors of suicide loss and involves them in the work of the Foundation
• Provides programs and resources for people with mood disorders and their families, and involves them in the
work of the Foundation
The Foundation's activities include:
• Supporting research that is improving our understanding of suicide and its prevention. Since 2000, AFSP has
invested over $8 million in new studies, including research into treatments for people who are depressed and
suicidal.
• Providing education and information about depression and suicide to professionals, the media and the public
through workshops, trainings, the AFSP website, videos, publications, brochures and public service
announcements. AFSP's PSA, "Suicide Shouldn't be a Secret" has reached 90 million television viewers.
• Publicizing the magnitude of the problems of depression and suicide, advocating for policies and legislation that
can help prevent suicide and working to eliminate the stigma surrounding mental illness and suicide.
• Offering programs for survivors of suicide loss that can be of assistance and involving survivors in suicide
prevention. AFSP survivor initiatives include the National Survivors of Suicide Day program, which was
broadcast to over 130 communities and was simulcast on the AFSP website, the Survivor e-Network and
trainings for survivor support group facilitators.
AFSP uses 84.7% of all donations given to support its programs
Only 15.3% of donations fund AFSP's administrative costs
History:
In 1987, a number of leading experts on suicide came together with business and community leaders and survivors
of suicide to form AFSP, a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. They believed that only a combined effort
would make it possible to fund the research necessary for progress in the prevention of suicide. Such an approach
has proven successful with heart disease, cancer and diabetes and it was hoped that it would be successful in
dealing with depression and suicide.
Many of our original founders were concerned with the alarming rise in youth suicide over the past four decades.
During this period, the suicide of young men had tripled; that of young women had doubled. Suicide is now the
second major cause of death among high school and college students.
Suicide is even more frequent among older people. The highest rates are found in men over 50. Before the AFSP
was formed, there was no national not-for-profit organization dedicated to funding the research, education and
treatment programs necessary to prevent suicide. Over the past 20 years, we have changed that.
American Foundation for Suicide Prevention
120 Wall Street, 22nd Floor
New York, NY 10005
Toll-free: 1-888-333-AFSP
Phone: (212) 363-3500
Fax: (212) 363-6237
Website: www.afsp.org
Email: inquiry@afsp.org