Please complete page 4 and mail to Eddie's Angels, PO Box 3114, Sag Harbor, NY 11963 to become a sponsor of the 2nd Annual Shining Light of Hope Benefit.

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 last year’s program, which provides
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. 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.

3. 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

4. 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