The need for mental health information
by families who have no where to turn can best be expressed in an obituary published by a bereaved father in Boise, Idaho.
His touching tribute to his son poignantly expresses his frustration with the unavailability of resources for concerned parents
and loved ones. Mr. Butler has graciously allowed FREE Mental Health Screening.com to include his writing on our site. He
hopes to help others understand the horrible toll that unrecognized and untreated mental health problems cause individuals,
families, and society.
It is with a heavy heart that I, Chad Butler am burdened with the task of writing an obituary for my beautiful son
Nicholas (Nick) J. Butler. His mother Debbie Jean DeVilliers and I welcomed him into this world on Sept. 12, 1979 in Boise,
Idaho. I was fortunate after his mother and I divorced to have been his primary parent. I didn't have to share him often
with anyone but my grandmother who has since passed on. She adored him as did anyone whose life he touched. He was such a
sweet and loving child. Any parent would have been proud of his intelligence, wit and kind heart. Nick graduated from Capital
High in 1998, and lived all of his short life here in Boise. He then worked alongside me at the Current Source; a family owned
business. He was a quick study and learned as much as he could about electronics. He was a joy and the customers and vendors
loved him. Nick had dreams and ideas of his own, and ventured off to discover his own path. There were so many possibilities
that were just outside his reach. Then depression began. Nicholas married Elizabeth Williams and sadly like many young marriages
it ended after five years. Another disappointment and feelings of failure added to the depression. Nick decided he would attempt
to work a "regular" job so he took a position at Sterner & Klein doing telemarketing. He excelled at that and
received many awards for his efforts including a national award for the most sales at AOL. Then the entrepreneur he wanted
to be beckoned again. Many efforts and ideas unfortunately didn't materialize to his satisfaction. More sadness and more
unworthiness filled his thoughts and actions. I hope I'm painting a picture of a normal young man that told great jokes,
gave freely of his love, ate sour candy, loved fireworks, pizza, music, movies, camping, making people smile and laugh. He
was always the first and last to say "I love you". Nick was always on a quest for the meaning of spirituality and
knowledge of many things in life. I tell you this because Nick took his own life, a life of promise, a life of countless people
who adore him. This disease is real and when I attempted to find a suicide prevention charity, I came up empty handed. I'm
not saying had there been one he would still be here. I would like to make a plea for more information to be given to those
in need of assistance before they get to the breaking point. And for those surviving family and friends who are left behind
to deal with the heartache and questions. I miss my son. As long as I live I will always miss my son. I feel as if my heart
is truly broken. However, I am very grateful for all of the friends and family who have come to my aid in this hour of my
need. They have traveled far and done great deeds to help ease my pain. I want to acknowledge the pain of Nick's mother
and her other three children, Shanta, Cody and Jessie. Also the grief of my children, January and Jazz; my mother, sister
(Nick's Auntie Alene), Nick's girlfriend Serena, along with numerous other family members and friends who are trying
to make sense of this senseless tragic event. A memorial service followed by an open house and potluck in celebration of Nick's
life will be held at my home in Boise on Saturday, July 21, 2007 at 11 a.m. I pray Nick's Great Grandpa Nick will continue
to watch over him and that he will finally have true peace with his father in heaven. Goodbye my son I will never forget you.
Love, Dad.