Gary is trekking to base camp for our charity and Mind Washington Young Persons Project . The two charities have worked closely together over past few years.

Gary is trekking in memory of his beloved wife Irene and Son Colin. He was supported on Monday by his family and close friends and was presented with a cake which had been finished with the image of the Flag of Hope. The Cake  was kindly dontated by Jillian Callaway and we are extremely grateful for her kindness and beautiful work.

The flag now holds the names of loved ones which will accompany him on his journey. Gary will be leaving the flag at Base Camp with the Peace Flags. You can sponsor Gary on line by  visiting www.garyseveresttrek.com

Gary, IUCSF & Mind Washington would like to thank Damian for all his hard-work and time spent on the I.T linked to this project.

Special thanks to Gary Stoker, his family &  friends, all the families that supported the event. Special thanks to the Trustees that attended from IUCSF and very special thank you to the IUCSF Youth Panel members, Sam, Joe, Alex, Dan & Charlotte for all their hard work on the evening.

On Monday 13th Feburary IUCSF are inviting Gary to meet with families who have lost loved ones to suicide to come along and meet with Gary and write their loved one’s name on the “Flag of Hope”. Gary will be leaving the flag at Base Camp Everest when he starts his Trek to the Base on March 28th 2012. You can follow his progress and sponsor him by following this link.

https://mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/garyseveresttrek

Anyone interested in attending the evening which starst at 7 pm and is being held at IUCSF offices in Great Lumley Community Centre please contact Shirley 0191 3875661. If you would like a name dedication but cannot attend please still contact Shirley and we will be happy to write the name on your behalf.

We wish Gary all the best in his brave challenge in memory of Irene & Colin

Mr Gary Stoker has kindly offered to raise money for our charity and MIND Washingtonby trekking to Everest Base Camp.    This is an amazing offer and will see Garyachieve one of his life long ambitions. Gary is a keen walker but this will be his toughest challenge yet. We are so grateful to Garyfor his offer to raise funds for our charity.  Garywill carry with him a Flag of Hope. The flag will carry the names of loved ones who have been lost to suicide.

GaryfromWashingtonsaid:

“I am doing this in memory of his my beautiful wife Irene and my precious son Colin, and I am embarking on a trek of a lifetime to EVEREST Base Camp on – 29^th March 2012.

As a family our whole life together was filled with special moments and adventures into the hills and mountains of the UK, especially our beloved Lake District.  It has always been an ambition of mine and this trek into theHimalayasfeels so appropriate to remember them by!

In my efforts, and with your help and support, I am hoping to raise as much as we can for Young People who suffer from Mental Health conditions.

So please join me in my challenge and donate as much as you’re able so we can help as many young people as possible.”

IUCSF have worked on a number of projects with MindWashingtonand through Steven Rowntree, Young persons project worker are delighted thatGaryhas chosen to divide monies equally between the two charities.

The Washington Mind Young People’s Project works with 16-25 year olds who experience mental health or emotional health problems. The project works with young people throughout theSunderlandlocality offering 1-1 talking therapies and group work. The project also works in collaboration with young people in creative and innovative ways regarding their emotional health and wellbeing.

You can support Gary in his quest to raise money for If U Care Share Foundation and Mind Young Peoples Project by Clicking on the following link:

https://mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/garyseveresttrek

IUCSF were extremely honoured by Gary’s quest to raise money for our Charity and Mind Washington Young Person Project. Its an extremely tough challenge and one which will see him acheive a life long ambition and dedicate to his Beautiful Wife & Son,  Irene & Colin.

We are hosting an evening on Feb 13th at 7 om in Great Lumley Com Centre and invite anyone that has lost a loved one to suicide to come and write their names on the Flag of Hope which will be left at Base Camp Everest. If you would like to attend and also chance to meet Gary please contact Shirley on 0191 3875661. We will keep you updated on his progress. You can also follow Gary’s progress on Twitter on GaryMst.     

The event was organised by Ivan LeHane who had previously made a radio documentary on the impact of mental illness and suicide. We are delighted by the amount raised and would sincerely like to thank all Ivan and the team for all their hard work and the sleepless nights. A team of volunteers from the Sunderland University at Spark FM give up their time to sell our wristbands on the streets of Sunderland City Centre, they were joined by Gen Too employees and Pennywell Project. If you would like to listen or watch some footage for the weekend .

Everyone involved at IUCSF would like to say a massive thank you to Ivan and his team. We are in the process of adding the interview produced by Ivan on mental health and it will be on site very shortly. You can also view the challenges that the Presenters faced by following the link below

http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fplaylist%3Flist%3DPL39EA675159A8E285&h=dAQEM6qUCAQHFbg0e0FGr0iEscwSH_CsT0r_nU_h3QyC5LA

Micah Richards and Sunderland FC are supporting the event by donating items which will be used for fundraising.  Donations can be made to our charity by texting IUCS11 to 70070.

We thank all volunteers involved with the weekend with special mention to IVAN LEHANE for all his work in supporting our charity. Good luck to three presenters. You can check out who will be named as the third and final presenter to be LOCKED IN by tuning into 107 FM.  http://sparksunderland.com/

As a charity that see daily the impact of death by suicide we are left dismayed that Mr Clarkson has spoken about things he clearly has very little experience or knowledge of

 We received a call from distressed Mum whose Son lost his life this way. He clearly knows very little about suicide or the devastation it has on those left behind. He does not know the people concerned so to comment or whether it is “selfish”, surely this is something that is for the family to decide.

 Why is it that when a person dies this way, people feel they have a right to judge or comment on the person they did not know.

We are working extremely hard to encourage people not to suffer in silence, mental illness is a genuine illness and needs to be recognised as just that. Is it any wonder when faced with remarks like this, people sometimes choose not to seek help for their illness.

We extend an open invitation to Mr Clarkson to spend an hour with a family who have bee affected by suicide and then have the same views.  We apologise for the in-convenience  Mr Clarkson faces when a suicide happens, and his train arrives late!!! Maybe this impacts on his ability to earn millions of pounds by talking about issues. However he needs to give consideration that the person that may have just taken their own lives is a loved one to somebody.  A Son Husband, Father or a Daughter Mother .

Our thoughts are with his family and all those that knew him and worked with him. He was certainly an extremely talented footballer and well liked player in the North East of England.

If you have been affected by similar issues and feel in need of support or someone to talk to, please click on the TALK button to take you to links to support services that want to help. Please don’t suffer in silence.    

A really amazing effort by some very, very kind people. We would like to thank David Cable and his very special colleagues for the hardwork and kindness. Thank you from everyone at IUCSF.