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South Fayette police partner to provide care kits for suicide loss survivors
South Fayette police partner to provide care packages
Officers collaborate with co-founder of nonprofit that supports survivors of suicide loss
By Andrea Iglar
South Fayette Township police officers are partnering with a homegrown nonprofit to provide care kits to suicide loss survivors.
Our Black Rose, a nonprofit organization co-founded by South Fayette resident Kelleigh Boland, provides the packages in memory of Patrick Butler, who died by suicide in 2020 in Westmoreland County. He was 34 years old.
Boland remembers Patrick, her youngest brother, for helping people in need and creating joy for everyone around him.
“Our Black Rose is meant to be the legacy of how my brother Patrick lived his life, not how he died,” Boland said.
Police Chief John Phoennik said offering the care kits to survivors after a loved one's recent loss is an opportunity to support the community beyond the typical duties of first responders.
“It’s something we can do to help our residents in times of crisis,” he said.
Within about a week of a reported suicide loss in South Fayette, a police officer will offer survivors condolences and a care package from Our Black Rose.
Last year, Allegheny County reported 147 suicides, with a half-dozen in South Fayette.
Compelled by their personal experiences, Boland—who works full-time in the nonprofit sector—and her mother, Lori Butler, decided to help fellow survivors of suicide loss.
They designed a package of gifts and resources to help survivors connect, remember and seek support. Boland’s father, Dennis, and her other brother, Brian, agreed to the idea.
In 2021, crowdfunding raised $11,000 from family, friends and South Fayette neighbors, and in 2023, Our Black Rose gained 501(c)(3) nonprofit status.
The black rose referenced in the organization’s name symbolizes life and beauty even in darkness.
So far, Our Black Rose has distributed more than 200 care packages, mostly in collaboration with 40 funeral homes throughout Allegheny County.
The South Fayette Township Police Department is the first law enforcement agency to work with Our Black Rose.
Boland—a former Saddlewood resident now residing in Lafayette Meadow— proposed the partnership to Phoennik during Coffee with the Chief, an event where the police chief invites the public to meet with him informally to share ideas and ask questions.
Boland said her family creates each care package by hand. They tie each black gift box with a teal ribbon, and encase the contents in purple tissue paper, to honor the colors of national suicide prevention.
The package opens with a letter from the family that begins, “The unimaginable has happened and our hearts are with you. A death by suicide leaves many unanswered questions, but you are not alone.”
Enclosed materials include a journal and pen, forget-me-not flower seeds, a tote bag to hold memorable items, Our Black Rose bracelets to help build community and diminish the stigma of suicide loss, and various self-care, legal and grief resources.
“We included resources from experts that we have found helpful in our grief journey,” Boland said.
The kit also includes an option to send the family information about the deceased person so Butler can mail survivors handwritten cards on difficult days during the first year of loss.
The care package acknowledges the mental and physical effects of suicide loss and provides people with a community of support, Boland said.
“If you are a suicide loss survivor, please know that we see you and acknowledge your loss,” she said. “This care package is our family's way of assuring you that you are not alone in this.”
