"Utah leads the nation in suicides among men aged 15 to 24. 'We have too much to lose if we don't work together and speak out about this silent epidemic,' said Utah first lady Mary Kaye Huntsman" ("Deadly taboo: Youth suicide an epidemic that many in Utah prefer to ignore." Deseret News. April 24, 2006).

In two decades, I have known hundreds of these personal stories of suicide and attempted suicide in Utah and throughout the world. Too often these tragedies are born from colliding faith and sexual or gender identities. Good families and nations divide over conflicts regarding human sexuality and gender. The real price paid? It is the lonely, dejected and hopeless youth who succumb to the horror of ending their beautiful lives.

Our world starves for communication and understanding. Dear Mr. Stephens: Letters of Love and of Hope is one path into a garden of wholeness, balance, and truth... thirteen letters to a beloved friend, lost in the pain and fear of personal paradox.

_____

Could scripture give hope to LGBTQ youth? Andy Fernuik, filmmaker and artist, says that it does. In fact, he shares human diversity through his music and core principles espoused in canonical doctrine. "There is no excuse for youth suicide. The first writer in The Book of Mormon exposes us for allowing our own people to perish."

Many know Utah for its world class skiing or its unique historical settlement. Most do not know that Utah leads the nation in young male suicides. "To me, those aren't just statistics: they are real faces twisted in lonely hopelessness who have shaken me awake at night. I've known hundreds and I've ached learning their stories. They coincide in a head-on collision of religious faith with sexual and gender identities. At last, we are beginning to brave these open, overdue discussions as religious communities!"

Dear Mr. Stephens: Letters of Love and of Hope is an intimate collection of letters Fernuik published for a best friend tormented by his religious conviction and his attraction to some men. Through his letters, Fernuik recalls the darkness of his own suicide attempts but shares his peace: his vulnerable, generous drafts frame a cogent alternative to suicide without relinquishing personal faith.

Fernuik focuses on an issue he says encompasses human gender and sexuality throughout canonized texts. "We must share in our questions together. Questions can compass the most marvelous experiences; our discoveries emancipate us."

Andy Fernuik was raised in the Bible Belt community of Pampa, TX. He graduated from LDS Seminary, served two years as a full-time volunteer missionary in Italy, is an alumnus of Brigham Young University and of The University of Utah. His background in film/TV, vocal performance, linguistics and professional skiing has taken him around the world.

Dear Mr. Stephens: Letters of Love and of Hope is available in paperback (200 pp.) and ebook formats (also in select foreign markets). For more information, please contact Andy through the contact page at www.andyfernuik.com.

[click here for a copy of Dear Mr. Stephens]