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Victory Bridge suicide awareness walk set for Sunday

Suzanne Russell
@SRussellMyCJ
  • A suicide awareness walk in tribute to Giancarlos Taveras is planned for 4 p.m. Sunday on the Victory Bridge.
  • Participants will be allowed to speak%2C and prayer in an effort to bring closure the Taveras apparent suicide from the bridge last weekend. People also will be allowed to walk to the top of the bridge.
  • Parking will be provided along Smith Street. Participants will gather underneath the bridge.
  • The Victory Bridge will be closed to traffic for about an hour during the event.

PERTH AMBOY – To Javier Irizarry, Giancarlos Taveras was a supportive friend.

"I was close friends with him. He motivated everyone. If you were down, he'd encourage you. He was there to help you out," said Irizarry, 17, a junior at the Academy for Urban Leadership Charter High School here who was friends with Taveras for the last three years.

"He was into working out at the gym," said Irizarry, who wants people to get a clearer view of how Taveras lived his life, not how he died.

Taveras, 16, also a junior at the charter high school, is believed to have jumped off the Victory Bridge last weekend. His body was found on some rocks near the bridge last Saturday.

Irizarry is helping to publicize a Suicide Awareness Walk 4 p.m. Sunday on the Victory Bridge in tribute to his friend.

Police Chief Benjamin Ruiz said the walk is being organized by the Perth Amboy Police Department, the police department's Chaplains Corps and counselors from the Academy for Urban Leadership. He said the walk is revised version of the annual Suicide Awareness March canceled earlier this month due to poor weather.

View of the Victory Bridge that spans the Raritan River.

"It's an opportunity for closure," said Ruiz, adding there also will be a discussion about resources available. "It's unity of the community to come together in prayer."

Sunday's walk is intended to build awareness about suicide. Participants are asked to meet underneath the bridge and wear appropriate clothing. Irizarry asked participants to wear turquoise, yellow or purple, colors he said are associated with suicide awareness.

Ruiz said parking will be available along Smith Street where there will be a brief explanation of the event. The walk will not have a rigid form. People will be allowed to speak, pray and walk to the top of the bridge. Victory Bridge will be closed off to motor vehicle traffic for at least an hour during the event.

Irizarry said many students from the school are expected to participate. The charter school has about 100 students in each grade. Friends of Taveras and members of the community also are expected to attend.

Taveras is one of two apparent suicide victims from Raritan River bridges last week. Near his body police found the body of Anthony Sharpe Jr., 32, of Plainfield who is believed to have jumped from the Driscoll Bridge earlier in the week. Information about Sharpe's funeral arrangements were not available.

City and state officials have been complaining for years that the 2004 redesign of the Victory Bridge, creating a roller coaster-type arch in 110-foot high span, has resulted in an increased number of suicides. Police said there have been about 82 suicides or attempted suicides since the bridge was redesigned.

The city has been asking for a barrier to be installed on the bridge, connecting Perth Amboy connecting Perth Amboy and Sayreville, along Route 35, to prevent people from jumping to their death. State officials have said the $2 million to $4 million cost for the barrier is not budgeted.

Following Taveras death, however, state Sen. Joseph Vitale, D-19th District, contacted state Department of Transportation Commissioner Jamie Fox to express his concern, according to Stephen Schapiro, DOT spokesman.

"Commissioner Fox has committed to working with NJDOT staff to get more information, and he is committed to working with Sen. Vitale and Mayor (Wilda) Diaz to see what can be done," Schapiro said in an email statement.

Diaz' office, however, has not yet been contacted by representatives from the DOT.

Taveras funeral is scheduled for 10 a.m. Friday at Our Lady of Fatima Church, 380 Smith St. Visiting hours will be held 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Thursday at the Gustav J. Novak Funeral Home, 419 Barclay St.

Staff Writer Suzanne Russell: 732-565-7335; srussell@mycentraljersey.com