A legacy of hope and healing.
Our co-founders David and Deborah Cooper live with what many consider a parent’s worst nightmare: the loss of their son Eli.
The Coopers’ healthy infant son was a pure blessing in their lives. Happy, curious, intelligent – Eli grew into a child with a quick wit and easy laughter. He loved to sing, taught himself guitar, and especially enjoyed playing music in his work with children. With so many gifts and a caring nature – it seemed Eli’s future held the promise of unlimited possibilities.
Leaving boyhood behind
In his late teens, Eli began to struggle with mental illness. His parents sought answers from doctors, desperate to provide him with all the help they could. His diagnoses: Depression and Anxiety – and later, Bipolar Disorder.
With psychiatric care and medication, Eli managed the best he could through his early adulthood. He tried hard to overcome the challenge of his mental illness. He wanted to follow his dreams. But his chronic condition was insistent, robbing him of all hope for a happy, healthy life.
Just shy of his 31st birthday, Eli decided he couldn’t fight anymore.
From sorrow, to vision
Eli’s loss was David and Deborah’s darkest hour. In the depths of their sorrow, the Coopers’ conceived a vision and Eli’s Place was born. A legacy to their son Eli, it will also stand as a legacy for the many other young adults lost to suicide who were unable to find appropriate long-term treatment.