The National Hopeline Network 1-800-SUICIDE (1-800-784-2433) is the first major project of The Kristin Brooks Hope Center (KBHC), started by H. Reese Butler shortly after the April 7, 1998, suicide of his 28-year-old wife, Kristin Brooks Rossell. The Hopeline links callers to a certified crisis center nearest the caller's location. Crisis centers networked under this single, toll-free number are certified by the American Association of Suicidology, thus assuring compliance with national standards and quality of services. Butler notes that certification is significant because only about 10 percent of the nation's active crisis centers are certified by independent agencies.