MEN failing to cope with mental health issues in Barnsley have been urged to speak up - after a young man who suffered in silence took his own life without any warning.
Liam Jones, of Manor Crescent, Grimethorpe, was found hanged in woodland in the village on Sunday May 20 - despite having never displayed any signs of having mental health problems.
The 24-year-old, who had been his usual ‘happy-go-lucky self’ in the days before the incident, went out with his girlfriend of four years, Quinn Atherton, on Friday before going on a night out with his friends in Cudworth the night before his death.
Quinn, 22, told the Chronicle that Liam had been fine when she left the house they shared on Sunday morning - the last time she saw him - before she returned home and he was nowhere to be seen.
She then found a note in the house and alerted police.
“He left a suicide note which said we will try again on the other side,” said Quinn. “I had no inkling he was battling with mental health problems, it just came out of the blue.
“Liam wasn’t depressed and he showed no signs to anyone he was close to. We had so much planned together - he’d just started a new job, we’d recently picked up a new car and we had a holiday booked.
“He was a happy man who helped anyone he could. The thing that makes everything more upsetting is that he didn’t tell anyone about what he was feeling - he was smiling on the outside but inside was obviously feeling different.
“I’m absolutely heartbroken and can’t believe it has happened. It’s okay not to be okay and people need to know that.”
Suicide is the biggest killer of men under 45 in the UK, with 84 people taking their own lives across the country every week according to charity Samaritans.
A Facebook page - The Liam Jones Legacy - was set up last Thursday by family friend Laura Copeland, which hopes to help and signpost mental health sufferers to much-needed support services in the hope of saving lives.
She said: “It’s almost like men are meant to have a front, a bravado and be strong - I think that plays a part in why they decide to keep everything bottled up inside and don’t choose to talk about their feelings.
“The amount of messages we have received from men around Liam’s age since his death has been overwhelming. They say they are also suffering and what happened to Liam has made them get in touch.
“For whatever reason, Liam decided to end his life but we want to do our bit if we can to try and save others. That’s why we’ve set up the page and it’s been received well so far.
“The whole Barnsley community have done us proud and we thank everyone for their support at this time. If the page helps one person, it will have done its job. It’s time to talk about mental health.”
Liam was a huge Reds’ fan and more than £1,500 has been donated by Barnsley fans to help Liam’s family via a Go Fund Me page.
A spokesman said: “Barnsley Football Club were saddened by the news of the passing of one of our own. Liam, a huge football lover and an avid Barnsley FC fan, was your typical young lad in that regard, where weekends watching the Reds were a real passion as was the time he’d spend with his beloved partner, friends and family.
“And in this instance, it’s the friends and family of Liam along with the Barnsley FC community who’ve rallied around over the last few days and in amongst trying to make sense of their loss they’ve come together to make something positive out of this tragic event.”
Liam’s funeral will be held on June 12 at St John’s Church, Cudworth.
