988+1 veteran coins designed at Montana State to prevent suicide

BOZEMAN - Military challenge coins serve as an easy conversation starter. Some are tokens of time spent overseas, while others are a remembrance of rank or an award.

Now, a new set of challenge coins minted by the state of Montana - and designed by a Montana State University student - are intended to aid in preventing suicide among veterans.

Dubbed 988+1 suicide prevention coins, the coins will be distributed to veterans across the state in an attempt to lower the suicide rate among that population. This coin is meant to be a conversation starter for when a veteran meets a fellow service member in a time of need.

If a veteran is in distress, a fellow soldier can show him or her the coin, which includes the state's suicide help line number: 988. Upon dialing the number, callers can press 1 to connect with someone who is familiar with the challenges veterans face.

"We think of these challenge coins as a reminder that you are not alone and that there is someone there for you," said Todd Bucher, who served in the Marines and is the director of MSU Veteran Services. "There will always be somebody out there that will be right by your side no matter what you're going through."

Montana has for years been among the states with the highest suicide rates in its veteran community, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. The reasons for this are myriad, according to the Montana Department of Health and Human Services, including environmental factors that increase the risk of depression, high firearm ownership rates, social isolation, and a lack of adequate mental health and crisis services.

The coins came about as a collaboration between the MSU veteran community and a graphic design class in the School of Art in MSU's College of Arts and Architecture led by instructor Bruce Barnhart.

In the spring of 2023, students in Barnhart's class met with veterans to discuss ideas for coin designs related to the issues they face. Barnhart's students submitted multiple coin designs, and 10 of those ideas were minted in limited numbers. This year, DPHHS selected one design, by former MSU student Jo Brown, to be initially minted into 100 coins.

Brown's design features two clasped hands, which, she said, she included as a symbol of confidence and strength. Above the handshake is the phrase, "I will never leave a fellow veteran." The reverse side of the coin features an American flag as well as "988+1 Montana Veteran Lifeline."

"It's a symbol of one veteran pulling another out from the mud, metaphorically," said Brown, who is now working in California.

During her research, Brown said she learned of the soldier's mentality to put the unit or mission before oneself, which sometimes leads to soldiers losing the ability to ask for help.

"It was really important for me that the motif of the coin was the moment of help from when that coin is given from one person to the next," Brown said.

The newly minted coins will be distributed at various veterans' events across the state. Veterans will be given two coins each - one to keep and one to hand to a fellow veteran in a time of need.

"If it makes a connection with one person, that makes it all worth it for me," Barnhart said.

At MSU, Counseling and Psychological Services offers a variety of suicide prevention programming on campus, including in-person and online training and counseling services, as well as medical services at Student Health Services.

Often, preventing a suicide starts with identifying signs of distress, starting a conversation and directing an individual to available resources, according to CPS, much like the 988+1 coins are designed to do.