I have a feeling that this short video will save somebody’s life. In it, my friend Clint Hill publicly discusses the attempt he made to take his own life nearly 60 years ago.
As many of you know, Clint spent most of his life in the Secret Service, and guarded five presidents. The grief he suffered after Kennedy’s assassination, and the sense of abject failure that plagued him, were simply too much to endure. So one evening, he walked into the ocean, hoping to end the pain once and for all.
How he was saved, how he recovered, and how he managed to overcome the resulting PTSD is not the kind of thing I would normally post about here. But the number of people suffering from PTSD today is beyond tragic. And the number of people who kill themselves every day is beyond scandalous. This time of year in particular, is tough for a lot of people who survived a traumatic moment, but never really put it behind them.
I don’t know if there’s a “cure” for people in this situation. But I do believe there’s comfort in knowing you’re not alone. Clint Hill has been there. Like Jimmy Stewart in Bedford Falls, he hit rock bottom, jumped from the bridge, but lived to tell the tale. I think his story will help a lot people. Share it, if you agree.