2023 LASPN Hero Awardees
Each year the Los Angeles Suicide Prevention Network (LASPN) seeks to award local Los Angeles residents who advocate and lead in both suicide prevention and mental health advocacy. Residents are asked to nominate both youth and adults that show extraordinary efforts in reducing suicide and increasing help-seeking. Three awards are offered each year: the Outstanding Youth Hero Award, the Outstanding Leadership Hero Award, and the Outstanding Advocacy Hero Award.
The Los Angeles Suicide Prevention Council is Proud to recognize the 2023 Awardees!
Laura Abbasi (she/hers) is an Associate Regional Field Director with Everytown for Gun Safety, the largest gun violence prevention organization in the country. She works to elevate suicide prevention and awareness in support of the efforts of Moms Demand Action Chapters across the country and also manages the California Chapter. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in journalism from Hofstra University and a Master’s degree in Political Science from the NewSchool for Social Research. Laura is a passionate community organizer, honoring with action her brother Jeffrey Banish, who died by suicide. Laura lives in Thousand Oaks with her husband Siddique Abbasi and their three young children, Aamina, Elijah, and Rayah.
Susan Oriente (she/hers) is a High School Specialist and classroom instructor with an B.A. from Wesleyan University and a M.A. from California State University Dominguez Hills. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her husband, daughter, and beagle. Susie joined a New Hope Suicide Grief Support group after the suicide loss of her baby brother in 2019. She went on to become a facilitator who led many groups before co-authoring the New Hope Suicide Grief Support Handbook. Along with this leadership in the adult Survivors After Suicide (SAS) community, she created curriculum and facilitated New Hope’s first on-campus teen SAS group following a suicide loss on campus. Susie has now joined the New Hope SAS Training team and was able to train over 30 community health workers in LAC DMH to facilitate groups throughout LA.
“I’m Cloe Robinson (she/they), a teen advisor for Teen Talk App. Mental health has always been an important factor in my life, whether it be my own, or that of a loved one. I am so fortunate to have been able to work with Teen Talk and JBBBSLA for the last three years to make a tangible difference in my community. I’ve been able to support myself, and to make meaningful connections with users and people in my life who are struggling. This fall, I am attending UC Davis to study animal science on a pre-veterinary track. I hope to continue my work with Teen Talk and the topic of mental health during my college career.”