Our guest is John Trautwein. His book My Living Will: A Father’s Story of Loss & Hope details the October 2010 tragic loss of his oldest child, 15-year-old Will. A strong, popular and successful young man, Will was a freshman at Northview High School, and his death devastated not only the Trautwein’s but the entire community.

As a result, John and his wife Susie started a nonprofit called “The Will To Live Foundation” to work closely kids to not only help spread the message of teen suicide awareness in our community but also help these teens recognize the wonderful bonds of friendship we call “life teammate bonds” that help each other find the good in life!

John is a Graduate of Northwestern University and former baseball player, playing 7 years in the Expos and Red Sox organizations.  Since the foundation started, John has been making well over 100 speeches and presentations annually to high school students, college students, teams of all kinds, parents, coaches, teachers across America. John has turned the tragedy of the loss of his son, into a positive message that improves the lives and the Will To Live of kids everywhere. The “kids of Will To Live” have raised over $1,000,000 in an effort to raise awareness, increase education and deliver hope to each other, and their efforts have funded the acclaimed “Signs of Suicide” Program in schools all over the country. The Will to Live Foundation has been recognized on CNN, Major League Baseball, The Big Ten Network, and Fox Sports, just to name a few. In 2012, John and his wife Susie were awarded the “Presidential Point of Light” award for their work with the Will To Live Foundation.