An 80-year-old Ignacio man was found dead last week from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, said La Plata County Coroner Jann Smith.
Clyde Leonard McFarlin was found dead by his wife around 12 p.m. Feb. 7 at his Ignacio home. Smith said McFarlin had a history of depression and hadn’t been feeling well lately.
According to an obituary, McFarlin spent his childhood in Colorado, east of Colorado Springs. In the late 1960s, he and his family moved to the Aspen area, where he worked in the automotive/machine business for 30 years.
McFarlin retired and moved to Durango, “where he was able to enjoy his time ranching, mowing hay and long horseback rides through the Weminuche Wilderness.”
“His greatest enjoyment in life is the love of the mountains,” according to the obituary. “He spent endless hours pursuing his passions of backpacking, elk hunting, camping, dirt biking, river rafting, fishing, long distance running, bicycling and mountain climbing.”
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation at www.rmef.org.
jromeo@durangoherald.com
To help
Help for people having suicidal thoughts or for those who fear a person is considering killing himself can be found from these sources:
Axis Health System:
24-hour hotline at 247-5245.
National Suicide Prevention Hotline:
(800) 273-TALK (8255) or text “TALK” to 741741.
RED Nacional de PrevencióN Del Suicidio:
(888) 628-9454.
National Crisis text Hotline:
741741
Fort Lewis College Counseling Center:
247-7212.
Boys Town Hotline:
(800) 448-3000.
Safe2Tell Colorado:
(877) 542-7233 or online at https://safe2tell.org.
Colorado Crisis Support Line:
(844) 493-8255 or text “TALK” to 38255 or online at http://www.coloradocrisisservices.org/ to access a live chat available in 17 languages. The line has mental-health professionals available to talk to adults or youths about any crisis, 24 hours a day.
Trevor Project:
(866) 488-7386. Crisis intervention and suicide prevention for LGBTQ youth via online chat, text or phone.
Southern Ute Community ACtion Program:
Visit www.sucap.org and click on Suicide Prevention for a list of trained gatekeepers.
Second Wind Fund:
(720) 962-0706. This is not a crisis hotline, but the fund is available to youths who face social or financial barriers to crisis counseling. The organization requires a referral by a school counselor or mental-health professional.
Survivors Support GrouP:
Heartbeat of Durango meets from 6 to 8 p.m. the second Wednesday of every month at the La Plata County Fairgrounds, 2500 Main Ave. Contact Janna for information at (970) 749-1673.
American Foundation for Suicide Prevention:
Colorado chapter information available at https://afsp.org/chapter/afsp-colorado/
For Men:
A website for adult men contemplating suicide, who often are unwilling to seek help, is available at www.mantherapy.org.
