Agnes McKeen

Love has to go somewhere

Every year 45,000 Americans take their own lives. When her son became one of them, Agnes McKeen says her old self died. The scared and weak woman who was not willing to fight or didn’t know how to fight or didn’t believe in herself enough to speak her truth died with her son. Now, she is weaving communities together to talk honestly about mental illness, so no other child will feel so isolated and alone. She is one of many across the US working to weave our society back together.

 

2 Comments

  • Marjie
    Posted February 14, 2020 6:34 pm

    Thank you for this story.

  • Emily
    Posted December 1, 2020 12:26 pm

    Thank you for your story. I can’t think of a better way to honor your beautiful boy than the work you have been doing. What an incredible tribute to your son, to be of such service to young people, families and all of us. Thank you!

Leave a comment

If outside the US, please indicate your country.

I agree that the Aspen Institute can collect, process, and retain limited personal information for administrative purposes; and that the Institute can share this limited personal information with its trusted service providers for program administration purposes. I consent to receiving email communications from Weave: The Social Fabric Project at the Aspen Institute. I understand I can withdraw my consent at any time by contacting DataPrivacyLegal@aspeninstitute.org.


By submitting this form, I agree to the Aspen Institute's Terms of Use Agreement and acknowledge that I have read and understand the Aspen Institute Privacy Policy which provides additional information about how the Institute processes personal information, as well as rights I may have regarding the personal information the Institute maintains about me.

Hidden Fields


Copyright © 2025. Aspen Institute’s Weave: The Social Fabric Project. All rights reserved.