San Francisco 49ers defensive lineman Solomon Thomas will be among the over 1,000 people taking part in the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention's Out of the Darkness Overnight Walk on Saturday. Thomas lost his sister, Ella, on the morning of January 23, 2018, and this is his second consecutive year taking part in the event.
I walk for Ella.
I walk for my family.
I walk for those who struggle.On June 8th, I'm joining thousands to show the world that there is hope for those affected by suicide & mental illness.
Please join us in SF or consider a donation to @afspnational. https://t.co/gP46xFinUe pic.twitter.com/MuQZAQJuXe
— Solomon Thomas (@SollyThomas90) March 21, 2019
Joining the "Ella's Sunflowers" group will be family, friends, teammates, and other 49ers personnel, including general manager John Lynch. In fact, Lynch announced on Thursday that the 49ers are donating $10,000 to Thomas' team, which is double the amount the team donated last year.
Looking forward to being a part of Ella's Sunflowers @afspnational Overnight Walk team Saturday night in SF as @SollyThomas90 his family & friends walk in honor of those affected by suicide & mental health matters. The 49ers are proud to support their team with a $10,000 donation https://t.co/fvq5A7ECnb
— John Lynch (@JohnLynch49ers) June 6, 2019
In April, Thomas was presented with the inaugural Eve R. Meyer legacy award for his ongoing efforts to help those struggling with depression that might lead to tragedy. He admits that Ella's passing had an impact on his play last season as he dealt with anger, depression, guilt, and grief.
"I definitely had a lot of carryover from what I went through with my family in the offseason, losing my sister, just going through the grief process," Thomas told NBC Sports Bay Area last month. "I really didn't handle it well at first. I just kind of got stuck in a dark hole that I couldn't get out of for a while, and really didn't honor my emotions, or really even tend to them at all."
Thomas is now a potential candidate to be among the 49ers' breakout players in 2019.
"I know what I can do on the field, and that's what I'm excited about," he said. "I'm really confident in myself right now. I'm really confident in my abilities and what I can do, and my potential. I'm just ready to go out there and play as hard as I can, and kind of just show everyone, and show myself how good I can be."
Thomas is preparing to enter his third NFL season since being made the No. 3 overall pick by the 49ers in 2017. He registered 31 combined tackles and a sack through 16 games and 13 starts with the 49ers last year. Thomas has recorded 72 combined tackles and four sacks through his two NFL seasons.
Information about the Out of the Darkness Overnight Walk can be found here. You can also donate directly to the American Foundation of Suicide Prevention from the organization's official site.