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For the first time in memory, Baxter County recorded zero veteran suicides in 2025, capping a decade of intensive community outreach that transformed a county once burdened with the highest suicide rate in Arkansas.
Dan Hall, commander of Disabled American Veterans Twin Lakes Chapter 30, delivered the news during a presentation to the Baxter County Quorum Court on Feb. 3 at the invitation of County Judge Kevin Litty.
“What we’ve done is change the way we think about suicide,” Hall told justices of the peace. “We think of it as a public health issue, not an individual problem.”
The milestone represents a dramatic turnaround. When the DAV chapter began its prevention work roughly 10 years ago, Baxter County was losing approximately a dozen residents to suicide each year, with about half of them being veterans. One year, the county recorded 27 suicides. The county carried the highest suicide rate in Arkansas, a state that ranked eighth nationally.
Within two years of launching the community-wide initiative, the overall suicide rate dropped by 35 percent. By the third year, the veteran suicide number fell by 75 percent. In 2025, it reached zero.
Hall credited the entire community for the achievement, pointing to a network of roughly 30 community partners who meet quarterly and have woven suicide prevention into their daily work. The effort spans veteran service organizations, healthcare providers, the Baxter County Sheriff’s Office, local clergy, schools and the VA’s Community Based Outpatient Clinic.
The sheriff’s office conducts daily wellness checks that align with the DAV’s buddy check program, Hall said, targeting veterans and others who have become isolated. The Care Center at Redeemer Church coordinates outreach through 29 member churches, helping identify at-risk individuals through their families and congregations.
Dr. George Walford handles much of the face-to-face work with veterans in need, Hall said, while the DAV’s auxiliary unit commander oversees broader coordination. The chapter also provides Question, Persuade, Refer training through the QPR Institute to schools, community groups and other organizations.
In the school system, the chapter works with Dr. Sutton, the district’s mental health professional, along with school board members and school resource officers. Hall highlighted the NJROTC program, where senior cadets are trained to identify peers who may be struggling and bring concerns to counselors.
“We had one suicide in the schools, one girl, and it was way too many,” Hall said. “We want to prioritize and continue to prioritize that work.”
A key factor in reducing veteran suicides has been improving access to healthcare closer to home. Hall said the chapter fought to establish the VA’s Community Care Network in the area, allowing veterans to receive treatment from local providers rather than making the three-hour drive to VA facilities in Little Rock or North Little Rock.
“We had two vans that operated taking veterans to healthcare appointments in North Little Rock and Little Rock,” Hall said. “We fought real hard for the community care network to bring local services available to veterans where they don’t have to go three hours for a 10-minute appointment.”
With the community care network established, the chapter was able to repurpose one of those vans for local transportation, shuttling veterans to appointments with community providers when transportation is a barrier. A team of about half a dozen volunteer drivers keeps the program running.
As more veterans enrolled in VA care and accessed local services, suicides declined. Hall said the annual Veterans Outreach and Appreciation Picnic, now entering its 21st year, has been instrumental in connecting isolated veterans with available benefits and services. The event has grown from serving 100 veterans at Hickory Park to more than 800 at Arkansas State University-Mountain Home.
Hall also credited the late Baxter County Coroner Brad Hays for providing critical data that guided the effort. Hays trained his staff to distinguish between veteran and non-veteran suicides, making Baxter County the only county in the state tracking that information at the local level. Hall said current Coroner Sam Elmore is continuing that work.
The chapter’s success has drawn national attention. Hall said he and other community leaders have traveled to Washington, D.C., multiple times to meet with then-Sen. John Boozman, then-Rep. Rick Crawford and then-Lt. Gov. Tim Griffin, all of whom supported the effort. The group has been invited to present its model at national summit conferences.
“There’s not a community that I’ve ever seen that is more veteran friendly and aware than Baxter County,” Hall said. “And we’re recognized nationally for the work that we’ve done.”
Nationally, veteran suicide remains a crisis. The VA’s most recent annual report found that in 2022, the unadjusted veteran suicide rate was 34.7 per 100,000, with an average of 17.5 veterans dying by suicide each day. In Arkansas, 111 veterans died by suicide in 2023, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The state was the only one in the nation to record a statistically significant increase in its overall suicide rate from 2022 to 2023.
Hall acknowledged the work is far from over, noting that Baxter County still recorded 11 total suicides among non-veterans in 2025.
“For every suicide, there’s 134 people that are impacted,” he said. “We’re just getting started.”
The Quorum Court has supported the DAV’s suicide prevention efforts for roughly five years. Litty said he invited Hall to present to the court to update justices of the peace on the program’s progress.
Veterans in crisis can contact the Veterans Crisis Line by dialing 988 and pressing 1, or by texting 838255. The national Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is available at 988.
