Tim Kennedy, a U.S. Army Special Forces Green Beret and former UFC fighter, shared a suicide prevention message for veterans on Memorial Day.
“Know you’re not alone. There are thousands of people that will stand by you and love you. Courage is the act of overcoming fear. If you are depressed call 1-(800)273-8255. If you’re a veteran press #1 at the prompt. #veteran #suicide #suicideawareness #memorialday,” Kennedy tweeted Sunday, along with a video message to veterans.
Know you’re not alone. There are thousands of people that will stand by you and love you. Courage is the act of overcoming fear. If you are depressed call 1-(800)273-8255. If you’re a veteran press #1 at the prompt. #veteran #suicide #suicideawareness #memorialday pic.twitter.com/dKwZXgaw2e
— Tim Kennedy (@TimKennedyMMA) May 24, 2020
Kennedy geared his message towards veterans struggling with being thanked for their military service on Memorial Day, when the day is actually intended to remember those who died in the line of duty.
“Memorial Day is coming up. Obviously it’s about people that gave the ultimate sacrifice,” Kennedy said. “For all you veterans out there, I realize it is a tough day, right? Everybody is saying ‘thank you for your service,’ you’re getting discounts and things and the whole entire time you’re thinking about all your dead friends. It sucks.”
“It doesn’t suck so bad that you don’t have hope,” Kennedy added, before picking up a poster board with the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. “You need something you can email us. You can call this number, 1-(800)-273-8255, veterans awareness.”
Kennedy then pointed to a friend.
“This is my best friend Justen. We were in special forces together. He’s about to do ‘Murph.’ I just did ‘Murph,'” Kennedy said, referring to a workout dedicated to Lt. Michael P. Murphy, a U.S. Navy SEAL killed during Operation Red Wings in Afghanistan on June 28, 2005.
The ‘Murph’ workout challenge consists of: running one mile, doing 100 pull-ups, 200 push-ups, and 300 air squats, and then running another mile, all while wearing a weighted vest or body armor and completed for time.
“Go workout outside, go outside, go do anything,” Kennedy said. “But more importantly, find a friend. Find a brother that you can spend some time with. Don’t quit. Love you.”
Kennedy joined the Army in 2004 and began to serve with the Special Forces as a Green Beret in 2007. He eventually left the military and pursued a career as a Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) and Ultimate Fighting Championships (UFC) fighter and had various television personality appearances, but re-enlisted in the military in 2017
