Help Jennifer Navigate the Tragic Loss of William O'Donnell

Dear beloved friends, family, and community,

This GoFundMe is for the benefit of Jennifer O’Donnell, widow of William “Billy” O’Donnell and mother of Ethan, Alli, Austin, and Emily. We, her children, are writing on behalf of our mother. We feel the need to be clear and open about the nature of our father’s death in order to set an example for open dialogue on mental health. We believe honesty is the first step to healing, for those left behind and those contemplating death. We also want to be clear on the circumstances that led to our father making this choice and how it has created this financial need for our mom.

Billy O’Donnell dedicated his entire life to the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being of his friends and community. People remember him as an extremely generous person—sharing time, meals, laughter, resources, and conversation with people in seasons of joy and sorrow. He worked as both a physical therapist and a pastoral counselor, and touched and helped heal so many lives. We are shocked and devastated that he chose to end his. On October 9, 2024, our father committed suicide. Throughout his life, he sought help and counseling for experiences ranging from his childhood trauma to his life-threatening medical ailments. His strong faith and life-saving, life-changing relationship with Jesus Christ have been a witness and testimony to those who knew him. We have been ministered to in his progressively growing gentleness, love, and humility as the Holy Spirit continued to transform his character over the course of his life. In the last few years, our dad had been dealing with a shoulder injury that prevented him from working. This injury resulted in a stressful and ongoing multi-year lawsuit. He was also dealing with legal issues in trying to care for his elderly mother. Our dad worked hard his entire life. To suddenly be without stable employment and unable to provide in the way that he felt necessary, to be assailed by these concerns with which he felt unequipped to handle—we, as his family, feel he was unable to express how deeply distraught and overcome he felt. He did not ask for help in the most important way. He never told anyone about his suicidal ideation. He never said, “I cannot fix this by myself.”

We are now asking for help in a way that he could not. Our dad was the sole provider for our household ever since he and our mom decided to bless us by having her homeschool us as a stay-at-home parent. Because of this, our mom has been out of the public workforce for 20+ years and currently does not have a job. She will no longer benefit from the disability income our dad was receiving, which was taking care of her immediate needs. She will be taking on the lawsuit our dad was facing with the help of his closest childhood friend, his chosen brother. She also must reckon with and pay back some unknown financial debt that accrued after his shoulder injury. In light of all of this, we are setting a fundraising goal of $80,000 to care for our mother whose life has changed so drastically within the course of a day.

We are not ashamed to talk about our father’s decision and only regret that he did not feel the ability to share with us or others how heavy his burdens had become. We strongly desire that these details be shared with our community so that anyone struggling with suicidal thoughts may feel empowered to ask for help. We desire to show the true depth of our grief so that honest conversations about mental health may be more possible. We love our father and forgive him completely. We, beyond the power of words, want him here with us still. We accept him for who he was, no matter how confusing and contradictory this one moment was. We have found a measure of peace and desire a measure of peace for each of you. We are praying for all who love us and know we are being prayed for. Thank you to each of you who treasure a memory of our father. You carry a piece of his legacy. Each of his qualities is dear to us, even the more difficult ones. We love you.

Here is a link to some of the warning signs of suicide:

https://jedfoundation.org/resource/what-are-the-warning-signs-of-suicide/

If you know someone that’s going through a hard time or you have just an inkling that someone may be considering suicide, please reach out to them. You may be a part of saving their life.

Here is a link to a suicide helpline: https://988lifeline.org/

Reach out to your local church, counselor, family member, or friend. Please don’t wait. We will never cease to be amazed at the outpouring of support. People truly want to help.

With deepest sincerity, the O’Donnell children, on behalf of Jennifer O’Donnell

PS - To avoid platform fees and ensure 100% of your gift is delivered directly to Jennifer, please consider mailing a check or transferring via Zelle or Venmo. Contact marylosiak (@) gmail.com for check and electronic transfer instructions.