(Marcel and Chloe Roston | Provided by Marcel Roston)
Las Vegas, NV — Being a parent is not an easy task for anyone especially, when you become a parent at the young age of 20. This was the case for Marcel Roston when he had his twin daughters.
He was determined to give his daughters a better upbringing then he had when he was growing up.
“It kicked me into dad mode,” said Roston. “I had to change up some things but I didn’t know how to be a dad. I tried to learn everyday.
In the midst of this learning process as a young parent, he went through a divorce. When asked about how this affected his daughters, looking back he described them as being “pissed off”.
“I could imagine there was some resentment within them, here we are moving again to a new environment” he said. “Those were some unanswered and unresolved resentments I’m sure that they had, but yeah man forcefully they became their own individual at that time.”
Six years later on March 26, 2014, Roston tragically lost his daughter Chloe at 17 to suicide. When asked how this day changed his life, he described it as “both good and bad.”
“The bad part is that I sometimes feel more alone now than I did before my daughter passed” he said. “I have really hard and stern lines as far as judgment and emotion go and I’m really insistent and those are the bad things.”
When it comes to the brighter side of things, this devastating situation has given him a whole new outlook on life.
“The good thing is it really humbled me. It humbled me, man, to the point where I respect and appreciate just humanity,” he said. “It broadened my spectrum of understanding and intellect and really emphasized the importance of emotions and where they lie within the human being.”
Years after the tragic loss, Roston got involved with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention which gave him a sense of inclusion and belonging. But after a change within the organization happened he decided to start hosting his own events as well as starting his own non-profit organization called “Tomorrow Needs You.”
The goal is to not only help those who suffer from mental health issues but also help those who dealing with the loss of someone by suicide.
When asked what his goal was with these particular events he said, “My goal and intention with all of those ultimately emotionally inside was to feel included or part of something again. The sense of importance never entered my mind, I don’t want to be important, I just want to be part of.”
“Tomorrow Needs You” will be having a paint and pour event on June 19 in North Las Vegas, which will include music, wine, silent auction Items and special guests.
The message Roston wants to get across to parents is the importance of remaining teachable.
“Parents I don’t care if you’re 22,19,30, or 46, I don’t care. You always have to remember to remain teachable,” he said.
“Deceiving our children from our past, our actions, our words, our feelings, that leads them to believe that they can’t trust us with theirs. So remaining teachable, remaining honest, and remaining humble is the most beautiful thing in the world and if you lead with love, you learn with love, and you will eventually live with love and it’s the greatest feeling in the world. I unfortunately discovered that after the tragic passing of my 17-year-old daughter.”