Kelsey Kinsel began Salvation City in 2010.
Singer Chase Rice lends his voice on the HOPE compilation CD.
Celebrities such as Kim and Khloe Kardashian support the cause.NASHVILLE, Tenn. -
After losing two friends to suicide at a young age, a student from Belmont University is continuing to work to raise awareness to tackle the rising issue.
Kelsey Kinsel was just 15-years-old when her friends committed suicide within months of each other.
"I was devastated. I had never experienced the loss of a friend to suicide," Kelsey told Nashville's News 2. "They were people that I cared about and to know that they had lost hope devastated me."
However, from Kelsey's grief, hope was re-born.
In 2010, she began Salvation City, an organization dedicated to ending teen suicide.
"I decided to start Salvation City as an organization to raise awareness of suicide prevention and to be able to educate teens about depression and self harm and suicide," she explained.
Along with beginning the organization, Kelsey had another idea to help struggling teens. She wanted to create a compilation CD of uplifting songs.
"Music has always been something that speaks when nothing else will," she explained.
However, as a teenager with no experience in the music industry, creating the CD was a daunting task.
"When I first started the project of the HOPE compilation CD, I was 16 and I knew nothing about the music industry and I would start emailing the record labels and say hey can we use this bands song," Kelsey said.
Finally last fall, after more than two years, the HOPE compilation CD was released with proceeds going to suicide awareness.
"We hand picked each song to have a really positive and uplifting message and through the process it's shown me that you can take a small idea and turn it into something that can actually work and make a difference in people's lives," she said.
One of the songs the college sophomore selected was "Beats a Million Bucks" by country artist Chase Rice.
"She [Kelsey] explained what Salvation City was and how I could help," explained Chase. "Immediately I thought of the song ‘Beats a Million Bucks' because it was just the perfect uplifting song."
Chase wrote the song after appearing on the reality TV show "Survivor" in Nicaragua.
Though he lost out on winning the prize of a million dollars by one vote, he believed it was an experience that's made him richer.
"Forget about the bad, forget about the negative, focus on what you do have that is positive and hopefully they'll [people who listen to the song] think about that," Chase told Nashville's News 2.
He said he hopes its message will inspire anyone who hears it, "The fact that it's impacting people's lives in a positive way is just huge to me and it's part of the reason we do what we do."
Kinsel has also enlisted the help of other celebrities such as Kim and Khloe Kardashian and singers Colbie Calliat and Andy Grammar to pose with Salvation City posters to raise awareness about the cause.
"It just goes to show that there are a lot of people that care about this cause and that people's stories matter," said Kinsey.
According to recent statistics from the National Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly a million people attempt suicide each year.
For more information visit SalvationCity.org.
