Years after her 21-year-old son, who was on a career path to be a firefighter, took his life, Renee Ross is talking with first responders about his death.
Ross said Riley Redding missed a certification deadline which would push his career goals - to become a Wolfforth firefighter - back a year. That was the first in a series of things that gave Redding the feeling of doubt into his future.
“For Riley, those steps back really were failures to him,” Ross told EverythingLubbock.com. “He just kind of went downhill that year and that’s when we saw him struggling with some things that we never had seen him do.”
She talked with firefighters from Wolfforth and Lubbock fire departments, and the South Plains College Fire Academy.
“He always had a servant’s heart and he always wanted to either be in the military or serve in some way and the fire department was just a natural progression for somebody like him,” she said.
After Redding took his life on Aug. 18, 2015, she said she did see signs of anxiety and depression. But it did not worry her.
“I don’t know what else I can do other than tell his story and let people that are suffering with silent depression or anxiety or fear that they’re not good enough. That what Riley did, it didn’t fix everything,” Ross said.
She spoke to firefighters, reinforcing that it is okay for them to ask for help if they have concerns.
Next week, there will be a fundraiser for the Riley Redding Memorial Fire Academy Scholarship that provides funding for mental health services to the Wolfforth Fire Department and South Plains College Fire Academy.
