The founders of the Hot Rods nonprofit have made it their life’s purpose to reach people facing life’s darkest moments.
MONROE COUNTY, Mich. — If you stopped by the Milan Fair last week, you may have seen a small tent with a big message.
That tent belonged to Rod and Denise Beaton, founders of Hot Rods Motorcycle Awareness & Suicide Prevention Foundation, a nonprofit that started five years ago to promote motorcycle safety.
But the couple — Rod, a former Marine, and Denise, a nurse — soon found themselves steering their mission toward something much deeper: suicide prevention.
“Being in the motorcycle community and being out and about around them and the way they talk about stuff sometimes, it’s similar to what we’re doing with suicide prevention,” Rod said.
Today, Hot Rods has grown to 130 members and supports causes like foster care and veteran homelessness. But their most visible effort? A simple bench.
“They give the message that you are not alone,” Denise said.
Each bench is designed to offer comfort and start conversations. “A bench is a welcoming sit down, share your thoughts, share a friendly conversation,” Denise said. “So we were hoping it would go one step further and give that supportive message to help prevent suicide.”
So far, Hot Rods has donated 29 benches to 14 school districts across southeast Michigan, including Monroe, Tecumseh and Dundee.
“We’ve had schools call us, tell us that their kids sat on that bench and needed help and they went and got the counselor or social worker. Next thing you know, they’re coming out, and the community gets involved, the school got involved and helps the kids,” Rod said.
Dundee schools told WTOL 11 they received two benches last year and are expecting three more.
One of the movement’s strongest voices is Deborah Creque, whose daughter, 15-year-old Bella, died by suicide in March. When she learned her daughter’s school was getting additional benches, she was overcome.
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“We need these benches around. These kids need to have all this and to see it all because it does make a difference. Can’t be quiet about this. We have to be open and not scared to talk about it,” Creque said.
Laura Langenderfer, who previously struggled with suicidal thoughts, now volunteers with Hot Rods after hearing Bella’s story. She showed up wearing a shirt that read: “Broken crayons still color.”
“My shirt is ‘Broken crayons still color’ and it means that that even though you feel as though you’re broken, you still have a beautiful life and a beautiful message to share,” Langenderfer said.
That’s exactly the message the Beatons hope to continue spreading.
“Our motto is if we save one life, we did our job,” Rod said.
