Hello colleagues,
Michal Lester from Wikimedia Israel and Tsipi Erann from Wikiwomen recently sent an email to the Gendergap mailing list regarding the passing of User:Danveg. https://lists.wikimedia.org/pipermail/gendergap/2017-January/006453.html. Condolences to her family and friends. A memorial project has been established on Hebrew Wikipedia at https://he.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D7%95%D7%99%D7%A7%D7%99%D7%A4%D7%93%D7%99%D7%... .
I would like to remind all of us that there may be people in our community who are experiencing personal difficulties or distress, and that professional resources may be available to assist. As with many situations, I think that getting help before a situation becomes a crisis is preferable, and I would encourage people to take the courageous step to do so. Emotional support from friends and family, professional counseling, and medicines may all be helpful in helping someone. The Mayo Clinic provides a resource called "Depression: Supporting a family member or friend": http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/depression/in-depth/depression.... Quoting the Mayo Clinic page: "People with depression may not recognize or acknowledge that they're depressed. They may not be aware of signs and symptoms of depression, so they may think their feelings are normal. All too often, people feel ashamed about their depression and mistakenly believe they should be able to overcome it with willpower alone. But depression seldom gets better without treatment and may get worse. With the right treatment approach, the person you care about can get better." If you or someone you know is in distress, or is frequently sad, then I would encourage reaching out for professional support.
In the circumstance that an on-wiki situation does become an emergency, includes a threat of harm, *or* if someone discusses harm and you aren't sure how serious the threat is, English Wikipedia has the following resource, which includes information about how to Wikipedians are encouraged to respond if someone on-wiki appears to be suicidal: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Responding_to_threats_of_harm. Alternatively, if an off-wiki situation appears to be an emergency, includes a threat of harm, *or* includes a threat that you don't know how to evaluate, then please contact the local emergency services.
Sometimes life is stressful and sad for almost everyone. If you or someone you know is overwhelmed, frequently feels sad or discouraged, or is distressed, then please reach out for professional support. Rather than attempting to go through the dark night alone, or if you see someone else who is struggling with their challenges, please ask for help.
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Brosen_sunrise.jpg
Regards,
Pine