
About YLC
Your Life Counts is dedicated to “Helping youth & families nurture, protect & sustain their will to live…”. YLC’s first priority is to offer immediate attention to people who are at risk for suicide, providing counseling and support to those who are suicidal and for suicide survivor loss families.
YLC also offers programs for schools and communities to facilitate the practical delivery of its mission and suicide prevention training.
A central web hub facilitates an ‘online lifeline’ and extensive life affirming resources that has saved countless lives since 2000.
YLC is also on the front line of advocacy and research.
We need courage and encouragement to stay alive.
Rory Butler
The YLC model ensures there is “continuity of contact and care” from classrooms and assemblies to community and other events – giving youth and families opportunity to build trust and relationship with YLC – so necessary in ensuring pathways to hope and life are kept open. YLC’s innovative approach does not focus on suicide. YLC gets the attention of youth and families and attacks the root causes of suicide ie: low self esteem; low self confidence etc. It is a preventive medicine approach that aims to prevent a tragedy before it happens.
Your Life Counts provides a practical ‘safe harbour’ where people can communicated with us securely and unconditionally. YLC’s broad appeal is due to the organization’s credibility and effectiveness built on taking people seriously, listening to them, building relationship with them and following through with practical help and advice for as long as it takes.
Words from the Founder
Your Life Counts is the result of my own real life experience with fighting overwhelming circumstances and unbearable pain. Back in 1992 I felt my only option was to end my life. I was not depressed, I was simply at my wits end racked with unbearable loss and grief following the loss of several family members in close succession. Yet somehow my wife clued in to my struggles and the danger that I was in and she intervened and spoiled my plan. I’m very grateful that she did and today, I am a survivor. I am living proof that intervention works!
The tragic suicides of several youth and a school shooting in our community that resulted in the deaths of 16 five and six year old children and their teacher caused me to want to find out why suicide among our youth has become a silent epidemic.
From my own experience I know lives can be saved from suicide. It is probably the most preventable of all deaths. I can do nothing else but dedicate my life to saving lives. And that’s what inspired me to found Your Life Counts.
Today Your Life Counts is a growing network of full-time and part-time volunteers from all walks of life around the world dedicated to saving lives from suicide, reconnecting people with hope and helping them to embrace their reasons to live.
There are more than a Million people who die each year in the world, which is more people than those who die from war, terrorist attacks and homicides every year…
Brian Mishara, Psychology Professor, University of Quebec. Canada & Past President of the International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP)
Working together – with your help and financial support we can turn this around and save lives.
Rory Butler,
Founder and CEO of Your Life Counts