Bay, AR – (JonesboroRightNow.com) – Sept. 12, 2025 – 16-year-old Aden Graham, founder of the nonprofit Aden ROCKS, will be hosting his first Light the Darkness 5K later this month to raise awareness for Suicide Prevention Month at the Bay Veterans Memorial.
While Graham has done multiple community service projects in the past, this one is a free memorial event, and it is personal to him and his mother, April Goza, as it is being held in memory of her brother.
“He died of suicide when he was really young, and I never got to meet him,” Graham said. “I’m doing this in commemoration of him. It’s Suicide Prevention Month, so I figured it’d be a good time to do a 5K in remembrance.”
September is National Suicide Prevention Month, in which people are called upon to raise awareness and spread hope regarding suicide prevention.
Graham said he hopes to make this a yearly event because he feels this subject should be addressed more, noting other people he knew who have shared their stories of loss with him as well.
“We are doing this race to bring awareness for people who have lost people they love to suicide,” he said. “I’m doing it for everybody. If you lost a loved one and you need a way to celebrate their memory, that is what this is about.”
The event is scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 20, with check-in at 6:30 a.m. and the 5K will begin at 7:30 a.m. at Bay Veterans Memorial, located at 316 N. Main St., next to the post office in Bay. Water will be provided afterward.
Registration is free and participants can register at the event or online; however, Graham said if people register online, he’d have a better idea of how many participants will be attending, allowing for better event preparation.
To register online, click here. The deadline for online registration is Friday, Sept. 19.
If you or someone you know is struggling with suicide/mental health, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Hotline. For more suicide prevention resources, click here.
