Project Semicolon Founder Dies At 31

One person can truly make a difference. Amy Bleuel was proof of that.

Someone who dealt with mental illness herself, Bleuel wanted to honor her father, who had died of suicide. She chose the semicolon, and what became a tattoo trend has since become a stark reminder that we all have stories that continue.

“A semicolon is used when an author could’ve chosen to end their sentence, but chose not to,” Bleuel said on her website. “The author is you and the sentence is your life.”

She encouraged those who were affected by mental illness to draw a semicolon on their wrists to represent that their stories were not finished yet. The story of the semicolon has gone on to touch an estimated millions worldwide.

On March 24, Bleuel's story seemingly came to an end with her suicide at the age of 31. She leaves behind her husband, David.

Bleuel's life was riddled with trauma and sadness; she was placed in child protective services at the age of 8, started self-harming and attempted suicide after being sexually assaulted at 10, and was raped at 13. Her father completed suicide when she was 18, and from there, she was released from the child protective services system. In college, things did not appear to get much better; she was raped twice and suffered a miscarriage. At 30, she was struggling with alcoholism and had attempted suicide at least five times.

That did not stop her from creating Project Semicolon, however. It began as a faith-based, nonprofit organization in 2013 and grew to encompass millions in its online community. The organization has been discussed and covered by USA Today, MTV, People, and The New York Times, among other publications, and sparked a worldwide phenomenon where countless numbers of people were suddenly sporting semicolon tattoos.

As its ultimate goal, Project Semicolon hopes to lower suicide rates in the United States and the rest of the world. Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the United States, with nearly 43,000 deaths reported from suicide in 2014.

It would appear that Bleuel's story is continuing; while her funeral occurred at the Pfotenhauer Funeral Home and Cremation Service in Green Bay, Wisconsin, on April 1, it would seem that Bleuel's story is still inspiring millions to speak out in support of those struggling with mental illnesses.

“With her prolific semi-colon campaign, she brought real awareness to an issue that is often misunderstood and can be complex in nature," The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention said in a statement. "Amy’s life was a testament that one person truly can make a difference. She had a powerful voice that gave others the confidence to speak openly about mental health.”

There were countless others who spoke up in support of Bleuel's influence as well.

"You inspired so many people to keep going," said Twitter user Lisa Fletcher. "My fiancé committed suicide and your project really touched me after that. Your story has not ended. Fly high with the Angels now."

Twitter user Leslie Noble said that people needed to continue to help those who were struggling with their own mental health.

"It's up to each of us now; to follow Amy Bleuel's example," she tweeted. "You are not alone; we're here for you."

While it could have been all too easy for Bleuel to pull the covers over her head and believe that suicide prevention was not her mandate or her responsibility, she chose to stand and fight for what she believed in, and did so while continuing to battle her own demons. She is a testament that one person, regardless of the various struggles they might be enduring - and we all have things happening, whether we want to acknowledge it or not - can truly make a difference.