My Story

Why I’m running

I’ve always wanted to do the Great North Run with my dad, Keef, and I’m thrilled to be taking part with him this year to raise money for Blue Spirit.

The co-founder of the charity, Solen, and I have been singing in a choir together for many years. I am in awe of the work she has done in setting up Blue Spirit in memory of her son, Laury. Blue Spirit does incredible work to enable young people facing mental health challenges to get involved with sailing.

Mental health is something that affects all of us, and we all need opportunities to find the things that we love in life, which help us navigate the difficult times and keep us connected. For Laury, that was sailing.

Over the years, running has been an important outlet for me in managing my own mental health, and I’m so happy to be running the GNR in support of this amazing charity.

Please donate what you can to spur me on for those 13 miles, so that Blue Spirit can continue its vital and beautiful work.

More about Blue Spirit

Blue Spirit aims to boost mental health and help prevent suicidal ideation in young people, primarily by providing sailing experiences to youngsters who are experiencing a mental health challenge or social / economic disadvantage. We work in partnership with experienced sail training organisations, through whom we can offer anything from dinghy sailing and courses to residential voyages. We establish relationships with organisations working with young people from marginalised backgrounds. They are well-placed to identify those who would normally find it difficult to access this kind of activity, or who do not have other mental health support, e.g. young refugees / asylum-seekers who face cultural and linguistic challenges, as well as often having experienced trauma, or young people from other communities such as young carers or those from areas characterised by socio-economic deprivation particularly in Newcastle & Gateshead. Blue Spirit makes the experience affordable while helping groups discover an opportunity which would otherwise be out of their reach. We help those who are most likely to benefit from sailing, who are those least likely to be able to afford it. Research carried out by the National Centre for Social Research states that “people living in low-income households were far more likely to have been diagnosed with mental illness than those in high income households.”   

Research has shown that being in ‘blue spaces’ can enhance wellbeing and reduce stress. Sailing helps develop essential life skills such as communication and teamwork. A sailing voyage takes people away from their usual surroundings and out of their ‘comfort zone’ and puts them into an alien environment where they must accept authority, live and work together.  It is a chance to escape their daily reality, giving themselves and their caregivers a break, and try something fun and new. Since August 2021, we have given around 160 young people from some of the most disadvantaged communities life-enhancing & sometimes life-changing experiences. Please help us continue our work and widen our reach!