New Campaign Transforms Grief Into Gold: "Beauty of Broken" Launches to Support Families After Suicide Loss

Every year, over 30,000 American children lose a parent to suicide, and tragically, family members affected by suicide are three times more likely to die by suicide themselves*. And while their cause is a noble one, the majority of nonprofits in this space focus on suicide prevention, such as raising awareness about important resources, hotlines, trainings and more. What makes Project Unbroken different is that it focuses on '"postvention" – helping families pick up the pieces and thrive again in the wake of a suicide, emotionally, financially, and spiritually.

At the heart of the campaign is a cinematic film featuring real stories from suicide loss survivors who each chose an object that represents an irreplaceable connection to the loved one they lost. Eight-year-old Charlice, who lost her father to suicide, chose a baseball glove. Sarah, whose husband died by suicide, selected a watch. Chris and Martha Thomas, who lost their 24-year-old daughter to suicide, chose a sunflower.

In stunning CGI cinematography, the film shows those meaningful objects – the baseball glove, watch, and sunflower – all being shattered as if they are made of ceramic, a visual metaphor for the devastating impact of suicide on families and the complicated process of grief that comes with it. But the story doesn't end there. The film then shows the objects being reconstructed through kintsugi, eventually showcasing them as whole objects with golden scars. The message is clear: what's broken can be transformed into something even more beautiful and strong.

After losing her husband to suicide in 2018 and discovering kintsugi as part of her own healing journey, Project Unbroken founder Trina Roffino was inspired to build an organization around this powerful metaphor. Project Unbroken offers financial resources, community, and hope to those navigating the complicated grief that follows suicide loss.

"We launched Project Unbroken because families like mine were falling through the cracks after suicide loss," said Trina Roffino, founder of Project Unbroken. "My hope is that Beauty of Broken brings visibility to these families and opens hearts to their healing. Every golden scar in this campaign represents a child who's rediscovered joy, a parent who's found strength, a family that's learning to live again. This is just the beginning."

The "Beauty of Broken" film and additional resources, such as purchasing at-home kintsugi kits, are available at beautyofbroken.org. The campaign invites everyone to learn about Project Unbroken and share its mission, ensuring that families affected by suicide know they have a community ready to help them heal.

The campaign, created in partnership with advertising agency Tombras, will culminate in a special "Beauty of Broken" art gallery exhibition in New York City on November 22 for International Survivors of Suicide Loss Day. The event, which is free to the public, will be held from 12pm to 4pm at Artifact Projects (155 Suffolk St., New York, NY 10002, USA). The exhibition will display the kintsugi-restored objects from the film, each accompanied by a QR code that allows visitors to hear the personal stories behind them. Attendees can also purchase kintsugi kits to experience the healing craft at home, with all proceeds supporting Project Unbroken's mission.

"Most suicide-related campaigns focus – rightfully – on prevention. But we wanted to look somewhere else: toward the families who remain. And instead of speaking only about the pain, we chose to honor something equally real yet rarely shown – the process of rebuilding," said Kevin Cabuli, creative director at Tombras. "With kintsugi already at the core of Project Unbroken, we set out to express that healing in the most moving and beautiful way possible – a reminder that even what breaks can be rebuilt with meaning."

In its first year, Project Unbroken has helped dozens of children and families who have lost loved ones to suicide, which includes providing Charlice with a scholarship for Harlem School of the Arts; as well as covering two 12-week programs with Active Yoga Healing for Sarah's daughter, paying for Sarah's son's high school band costs, such as his uniform, band trip lodging and transportation, and band competition fees; and giving a scholarship to Sarah's stepdaughter for a trade school to become a certified event planner.

Project Unbroken would also like to extend their gratitude to Chris and Martha, who founded a nonprofit, named The Defensive Line, in 2021, three years after losing their daughter, Ella, to suicide. Chris and Martha launched The Defensive Line alongside their son Solomon Thomas, who plays in the NFL for the Dallas Cowboys. Their nonprofit aims to end the public health crisis of youth suicide, especially for young people of color, by transforming the way society communicates and connects about mental health.

About Project Unbroken: Founded by Trina Roffino in 2018 in the wake of losing her husband to suicide, Project Unbroken is a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping families thrive after suicide loss. Through community support, resources, and the healing art of kintsugi, Dallas-based Project Unbroken provides hope and practical assistance to survivors navigating emotional, financial, and spiritual recovery. Learn more at projectunbroken.org.

About Tombras: Tombras is a full-service, family-owned independent agency with a digital mindset. We're impact-driven, creative storytellers with performance at the heart of everything we do. Connecting Data + Creativity for Business Results® is our ethos. From strategy, creative, public relations and media to digital design and development, a social media command center, ecommerce, in-house production, a trade desk, customer experience lab and more, we do it all. Founded in 1946 and headquartered in Knoxville, Tenn. with satellite offices in New York, Atlanta and Buenos Aires, Tombras was named Ad Age's 2025 Agency of the Year. For more information, visit tombras.com.

Media Contact: Lindsay Harris, [email protected], 973-713-5344

*Statistics from National Institutes of Health, 2022

SOURCE Project Unbroken