BEST MINDFULNESS / WELLBEING PROJECT FINALIST - Margaret Walker: Suicide Awareness & Support Group

Your Name: Margaret Walker

Your Organisation/Company: Suicide Awareness & Support Grou

Your favourite thing about West Belfast: The people and the beauty on our doorstep

Your First Job: Family Support Worker
What it taught you: Never judge a book by its cover, always treat others the way you would like to be treated and always be kind.

What do you think are the key ingredients needed to make a person or organisation the Best of the West?

You need to have compassion and empathy and have love and hope for everyone you come across as you never know what someone is going through a smile can hide a lot. Values and Morals are so important. Teamwork matters you in order to be an effective leader. it is vital that you show your team Respect, Support and encourage them to be the best version off them selves. We are so blessed that we have so much support In West Belfast.

My name is Margaret Walker I am the Centre Manager for Suicide Awareness & Support Group in West Belfast. In my role we work under 3 Conceptual frameworks of Postvention, Intervention and Prevention of Suicide. I manage a team of 11 who all deliver a range of services from supporting a family who has been bereaved through suicide, to assisting an individual who is contemplating to suicide, also going out and providing life saving skills to all sectors of how to intervene and help save lives.
I am a big believer in “Suicide is Everyone’s Business” as I feel we all have a part to play collectively and that working together in partnership is paramount in the nature of Suicide Prevention.

I graduated from Queens University with Sociology and Psychology I also hold a Diploma in Life Coaching and Community Development.
I have spent the last 20 years of my life dedicated to helping keep our communities safer from suicide and I aspire to continue to do so. I am very passionate about this area of work as I am a founding member of Suicide Awareness & Support Group and I pride myself on how far I have come on professionally in my Journey. 
I enjoy spending time with my family and walking our dog and just the simple things in life that we take for granted.