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“Breaking the Silence” is the second annual charity concert hosted by NoResolve.org, a Macomb County-based suicide prevention organization. Three local bands will provide live music and dancing, dinner will be provided and participants can take part in a 50/50 raffle. Keynote speakers will include Utica-based psychiatrist Dr. Eric Blumberg, Macomb Daily reporter Maryanne Kocis-Macleod, and Beverly Cobain, a suicide prevention author and activist, and cousin of rock star Kurt Cobain, who committed suicide in 1994.

“Last year we had about 500 people at the event. This year we’re moving a bit slower - we have about 200 presales, but I’m confident we’ll have no problem filling the place and it will be great,” said Dennis Liegghio, director of NoResolve.org. “Our goal is to work on getting people to discuss suicide, to remove the stigma it has.”

Liegghio said the formation of NoResolve.org was an accident that has its origins in his own childhood. His father committed suicide when Liegghio was 14 years old, leaving the teen with his own battles with substance abuse and depression. A musician, Liegghio wrote a song about his father called “No Resolve” and played it throughout the community.

“I got involved with the Macomb County Suicide Survivors group, and spoke to them and played the song there,” he said. “People were really affected by it and we began to talk about forming a group to address the issue of suicide. We held the first banquet last year and we even put out a CD of music by artists whose lives had been affected by suicide.”

Proceeds from the event go to fund talks that Liegghio gives at schools throughout the county.

“I put on seven of those presentations in 2008 and we have 10 lined up so far for 2009,” he said. “I go in with my guitar, sing a few songs and talk about the warning signs of suicide. This benefit concert and dinner will help cover the costs of those talks.”

The organization focuses on warning young people about suicide because teenagers are particularly at risk. Suicide is the third largest cause of death for people between the ages of 15 and 24. In 2007 there were 32,000 suicides in the United States, Liegghio said, roughly equaling one every 15 minutes.

“It’s especially high for them because something like losing a boyfriend or girlfriend, or having problems at home, they often don’t have the coping skills that adults have,” said Liegghio. “They don’t realize that it’s just part of an act and another act is coming. All they know is that it hurts and they want the pain to end.”

The “Breaking the Silence” benefit concert hosted by NoResolve.org will take place Nov. 22 at the Mirage Banquet Center in Clinton Township at 6:30 p.m., and will feature three local bands and keynote speakers. The event will also feature dinner, an open bar, an auction and a 50/50 raffle. Tickets are $75 and may be purchased by visiting NoResolve.org or calling 877-228-9550.