Son's suicide leads mom to raise money for mental health and concussion research

A Prince George mother hopes a scholarship in memory of her son, who committed suicide, will help fund more research into mental illness and concussions.

Jared Parker took his own life this year when he was only 20 years old. His mother, Linda Parker, believes his death may have been partly caused by two concussions he sustained as a child while snowboarding and playing hockey.

She hopes that raising $30,000 for a UNBC scholarship will help researchers shed more light on the link between concussions and mental illness.

"As a mother, as a parent, I can't help but think, did his two concussions, pre-teen concussions, have anything to do with his behaviour in his later teens — did that affect his life?"

Closure for questions unanswered

Parker says she will never know exactly why her otherwise active and curious son suffered from anxiety and depression as he grew older. But she hopes that this scholarship will help fund research that may prevent other families from suffering the same fate as her son.

"It's really an opportunity to give something to the community through our personal tragedy. Perhaps we can prevent this from happening to another family."

Contributing in their son's memory is part of the healing process, said Parker.

"It's so important to us. It's part of our healing."

"I hope he's remembered as a vibrant, curious, athletic young man who loved life."

People can donate to the scholarship at UNBC.ca/giving specifying funds for the Jared Parker Memorial Fund.

To listen to the full audio, click the link labelled: Son's memory lives on in scholarship for mental health research.