Staff Sgt. Steven Masterton places flags in the ground Monday as Soldiers and staff members from Fox Army Health Center place 492 American flags in the front of Fox during a flag-laying ceremony for National Suicide Prevention Month.

Hundreds of American flags adorn the grounds in front of Fox Army Health Center, representing the number of veterans who die by suicide each month.

The flags were placed at the site Monday in observance of National Suicide Prevention Month in September.

Suicide is “a big issue in the country,” with the majority of suicide deaths related to mental health, Fox Commander Lt. Col. Deepak Mathew said before planting the first flag.

In 2021, there were 47,646 deaths by suicide in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; and the Department of Veterans Affairs reported 6,392 veteran suicide deaths that year.

“It’s not a sign of weakness to ask for help,” Mathew said. “It is a sign of courage, of strength to seek help” for mental health problems.

The issue “hit home for me last year,” he said, when one of his closest friends since 2007 died by suicide the day after Thanksgiving, leaving behind a wife and two young children.

Mathew’s friend was his former company commander when Mathew was an executive officer and platoon leader, and the two had met for dinner just about 10 days before the friend’s death. During the dinner, “he talked about his kids and how great they were doing.”

Mathew said he was “devastated” by his friend’s death.

“We ask you to be vigilant,” Mathew said. “No longer just wait for somebody to seek help. If you notice something, a change in behavior, just ask and act. Perhaps we can save a life.”