Veterans kayak across Long Island Sound for suicide awareness

Mike Kilano didn't think he could possibly finish his 22-mile, hourslong journey kayaking across Long Island Sound on Friday. But thinking about his family waiting for him onshore, as well as his mission — raising awareness of high veteran suicide rates — helped him kick it “into overdrive.”

“It means a lot,” an exhausted Kilano, 44, of North Babylon, said afterward. “All that pain is worth it for the mission."

Kilano, a Marine Corps veteran who served in the Middle East during part of his four years of active duty from 1999 to 2003, has personally struggled with post-traumatic stress disorder. He was one of 28 veterans of various conflicts who paddled from Bridgeport, Connecticut, to Port Jefferson Friday afternoon during the annual 22 PTSD Awareness Challenge. It took him about seven hours.

Since 2016, the event and its name have drawn attention to the often-cited statistic that 22 veterans die by suicide every day.

Friday’s homecoming ceremony drew a crowd of around 250 cheering spectators. Kilano and the other kayakers hoped the event, plus the dozen tables touting mental health and other services for veterans inside the Port Jefferson Village Center, resonated with service members, family and friends.

Among the nonprofits and agencies connecting with veterans were the VFW, the Joseph P. Dwyer Veteran Peer Support Project and Paws Of War, for which Kilano raised about $2,200 that will help the nonprofit rescue and train a companion dog for a local veteran.

The average number of veteran suicides per day was 17.5 in 2021, according to the federal Department of Veterans Affairs 2023 National Veteran Suicide Prevention Annual Report. Advocates and officials suggest the true number is higher as some causes of death, such as overdoses, have historically not been counted. The statistic of 22 veteran suicides daily first appeared in a 2012 VA Suicide Data Report.

Marcelle Leis, the director of the Suffolk County Veterans Service Agency, said veteran suicide rates in Suffolk — which has the largest veteran population in the state — are likely “very similar to the rest of the country.”

Programs that connect veterans with one another and offer mental health services for them “help save lives,” Leis said.

“PTSD and traumatic brain injuries are very stigmatized diagnoses, so a lot of veterans don’t go get the treatment or the help,” she said. She added that veterans experiencing suicidal ideation are often “too proud” to seek out help, and it's “our responsibility” to reach them.

Paws Of War reached Army veteran James Donohue, 44, of East Yaphank, in 2015. Donohue said he sustained an injury during training and battled PTSD, but his service dog, Hero, helps him walk and attend large gatherings like the one in Port Jefferson on Friday.

Hero knows how to keep Donohue calm when running daily errands, or when he finds himself encountering more triggering stimuli, such the sound of fireworks.

“When I was having flashbacks of explosions from being in the service, I had Hero, so I was more at ease,” he said.