I wanted to write this letter to put down my thoughts for others to think about and comment.

A couple days ago, a friend of my son committed suicide. He had been struggling after high school to find steady employment and structure.

After three years, he gave up. Partly the environment, partly other issues.

The gist of it is, he had nothing to look forward to except living hand-to-mouth, and no prospects.

I wanted to bring this to your attention because many of the young adults I see in Lake County spiral down or leave town. We need to help them, not ignore them or only pay attention to negative behavior.

As a community, we need to work harder at alternatives to traditional 9-5 jobs to keep them engaged and moving forward.

We all deserve work with dignity, but the young adults are especially vulnerable to giving in to a dead end perspective (no future). If we are going to keep this community together, we need to look at these issues.

While my partner and I have helped out my son's high school friends over the years, it is not enough. We can't give them jobs, or be a professional mentor. We gave them our care and would listen when they wanted us to, and a safe place if they were homeless.

I hope that in the future, 10th grade on up will give practical lessons on coping in a down economy and ways they can achieve independence and a future that doesn't involve going out of county or into the military.

R.I.P Bryan.

Kathleen O'Connor lives in Lakeport, Calif.