iiyiikǎakimǎan

Today is World Suicide Prevention Day ♥️

Around the Firekeeper camp, we see every day as suicide prevention day - though we tend to prefer the word reduction. This work is ongoing, relational, and built into everything we do. Still, we’re grateful for a day that brings worldwide attention to an issue that deserves far more care, conversation, and action.

We believe that working toward reducing suicide is more than destigmatizing this issue and expanding strengths-based clinical counseling approaches. It is also about building up the things that help make life feel more connected, meaningful, and worth showing up for.

So today, we want to share something that shows what that work can actually look like.

Back in May, our students from the Heavy Music Symposium Class (Noise Collective) collaborated with the legendary Steve Von Till to create a piece of music together. It became a towering example of what we believe in: giving young people access to meaningful creative experiences, building relationships through art, and creating spaces where expression, identity, and human connection can all exist simultaneously.

This track is being released through Firekeeper Alliance Records and is available today on our Bandcamp page (link below). It’s listed as name your own price, but any proceeds raised from this track will go right back toward purchasing new gear for our after school club. Our very own Robert (Yob Hall) Hall also made a video for this song which is up on the Firekeeper Youtube channel. 

We’re incredibly proud to share iiyiikǎakimǎan (to try hard, to persevere) - the first of many collaborations featuring our HMS Noise Collective and artists we love. 

Special shoutout to Max and River for outfitting us with killer amps for this project. 

And to all our relatives we’ve lost far too soon…..We love you. All of this is for you. kittsiikǎakōmimmō˝ṗo´wǎ.

Keep the fire burning 🔥

https://firekeeperalliancerecords.bandcamp.com/track/iiyiik-akim-an