A Family Turned Grief Into Purpose
The April T. Bocian Memorial Foundation was built on love, community faith, and the determination that no other family should endure this loss alone.
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She Made the Forgotten Feel Found
April was born on April 28, 1998 at Mercy Hospital in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. At just one day old, Mercy Hospital selected her to appear in an advertising campaign for their school of nursing — her picture appeared on billboards and buses throughout the tri-state region. She grew up with a love of basketball, a sharp sense of humor, and a rare gift for compassion. At school, she took new students under her wing. She looked out for the lonely and the overlooked. She made everyone she met feel valued and seen.
She was a fierce competitor on the basketball court, known for her stunning red hair and her love of fashion. Off the court, she was the kind of friend who would clown around with her basketball teammates and play practical jokes on her sisters — the sort of easy warmth that turned ordinary moments into memories her family still carries with them.
April loved the beach. Her family took vacations to Erie and North Carolina, and she dreamed of traveling farther — especially to California. She looked forward to upcoming basketball team trips to tournaments around the country, and to every next chapter she believed was ahead of her.
Inside, April was fighting a battle few could see. She carried the weight of depression and mental illness quietly, hiding it from the world she worked so hard to brighten. On May 5, 2015, one week after her 17th birthday, April died by suicide. The world lost someone extraordinary. Her family refused to let her loss be the end of her story.
Support Our MissionLove, Faith, and Community
Our family extends our deepest gratitude for the outpouring of love and support during this most difficult time. Like the footprints in the sand, we have true faith that God carries us when times are difficult and never leaves our side — we firmly believe God has carried us by sending angels in the form of family, friends, and an entire community that reached out with open hearts.
April would not want to be remembered only as a gifted athlete, but as a beautiful soul. That was the true definition of April. She was always performing random acts of kindness for people around her, and since her passing many have written to us to share the kindnesses she showed them. We are honored that so many continue this ritual in her memory, making the world a better place one small act at a time.
Our purpose in starting this foundation is to honor her memory and to help other families avoid the pain of losing a loved one to suicide. We will educate the public and our schools on mental illness, because having a voice is a sign of courage. Please help us use our voices to eradicate the stigma that mental illness evokes, so our strongest and most gifted individuals no longer have to suffer in silence.
The Silence Around Mental Illness Costs Lives
Throughout 2013 in the United States alone, over 40,000 people died by suicide, and since the early 2000s suicide rates have been increasing steadily — causing more deaths than homicide.
Behind every statistic is a family who watched someone they love disappear inside a battle no one could see. We know this because we have lived it. That is why awareness of the warning signs of mental illness — and knowing the resources that exist to help — is critically important. Every conversation, every open door, every neighbor who checks in matters. This foundation exists so that April’s story becomes a reason someone else’s does not have to end the same way.
Love Your Neighbor as Yourself
You are to live with boundless compassion,
Just as Jesus did through his passion.
As he loved us, we should love one another,
Sharing the joys and pains of one another.
Feeling another's happiness or hurt as one's own,
Not a single person would be alone.
Together we shall participate in a union of love.
And all will end up, side by side, in Heaven above.
Written by April Bocian, shortly before her passing
Four Programs, One Purpose
What will your donation assist with? Your gift supports each of these programs directly, carrying April's compassion to the people and communities that need it most.
- Academic & Basketball Scholarships awarded annually to students throughout the Tri-State Area, honoring April's dual identity as a dedicated scholar and passionate basketball player.
- Donations to AFSP and NAMI, among other nonprofits that educate society on mental illness and how to recognize the warning signs.
- Annual Sponsorship of the AFSP Pittsburgh “Out of the Darkness Walk”, bringing neighbors together to end suicide and support the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.
- Elite Sponsorship of the EmpowHer Retreat, teaching young girls confidence, resiliency, and community service in April's memory.
Help Us Keep April's Legacy Alive
Every gift, every sponsorship, every share of our story is a small act of the radical compassion April lived every day. You can be part of what she started.