COEUR d'ALENE - The July death of Boise native and Olympic silver medalist, Jeret "Speedy" Peterson, will likely result in lives being saved throughout Idaho.

The Speedy Foundation, a newly forming nonprofit, is working to raise funds to establish a nationally certified suicide hotline in Idaho, something that's been missing since funding was cut in 2006. Idaho is the only state in the nation without a devoted suicide hotline, while consistently showing one of the highest suicide rates.

The Speedy Foundation was created as a memorial fund for Peterson after the 29-year-old used a gun to take his own life.

"I helped his mom organize everything for the service," said Shannon Decker, Peterson's cousin and president of the foundation. "So many people wanted to do something, they wanted to send money or flowers."

Decker said Peterson's mother was approached by someone who told her of the state's lack of a suicide hotline and suggested this may be a good opportunity to get something permanently in place in the state.

"We all thought this would be a good legacy," Decker said.

The Speedy Foundation was set up by two of Peterson's high school buddies, Skiff Larson and Tyler Neill, who help Decker run it.

They learned that Idaho State University researchers had developed a plan for developing a hotline, and that all that was needed was funding.

Since the last Idaho volunteer hotline was disbanded, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline has accepted calls from Idaho, something the ISU researchers say hasn't always worked well.

"While Idaho benefits from the Lifeline services, they are insufficient because national operators report difficulty in identifying resources and referrals for Idaho callers," states the university's report.

The organization has partnered with NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) Idaho and other mental health advocacy groups to help further the mission.

Doug McKnight, a Sagle resident and president of NAMI Idaho, said the fact that Idaho is the only state without its own suicide hotline speaks for itself.

"When people realize their state is so callous as to the needs for suicide prevention that they don't even fund a hotline, it makes one feel that nobody cares," said McKnight's wife, Ruth. "It's pervasive in Idaho that we either don't look at or we're just blind to the really grim suicide statistics."

The Speedy kicked off the Idaho suicide hotline fundraising effort on Sept. 21, by making the first donation of $10,000. The goal is to raise $220,000, which will include start up costs and funds to operate it for two years.

"At that point, we will start being able to look for sustainable funding from the Legislature and other sources," Decker said.