Walk for a Cause supports mental health

Every year, Western Financial Group does Walk for a Cause, which highlights a different group within the community and encourages people to walk to raise awareness and funds for the cause. This year, that cause is mental health, and the Mental Health Drop-in Centre, run by the Saskatchewan Abilities Council, was the centre of the campaign.
Jackie Washenfelder and Tanya Mores represent the Mental Health Drop-in Centre. While there were monetary goals for the walk, another goal is to raise awareness about mental health in the community and reduce any stigma that surrounds it.

Mores says their goal is to completely change the attitude towards mental health. She goes so far as to refer to it as mental health wellness, rather than mental illness, because the change is a way to focus on health, in the same way that people think of their health in general.

“The more we talk about it and the more we bring awareness to it, the more it is not that hush-hush thing. When we reorganize it and we rename it, it’s a lot easier for people to disclose that ‘I have this’ and it’s not the label first.”

Ultimately, the goal is to have people react the same way to mental health wellness issues as they would to any other health issue, explains Mores.

“Just like diabetes or asthma or something like that. Individuals that have and are living with a mental health issue, they are very productive in the community. There is that stereotype that you see people talking to themselves and they aren’t productive, but they are, most of the time there are people you would run into where you would have no idea that they have a mental health issue.”

The money from the walk will be used to fund an art project, Washenfelder notes, with people from the centre and the community at large to create an art project show what it feels like to have a mental health issue. There have been conversations with the Godfrey Dean Art Gallery to show the completed work, and the goal is the same as the walk, to raise awareness and reduce the stigma that surrounds mental health.

Tiffany Holmgren with Western Financial Group says that the Walk for the Cause program has raised over $2.4 million for causes across the country since 2002. This has been the biggest walk that Western Financial Group has done in Yorkton.

Going with mental health as the cause for 2017 was the result of a team decision, says Holmgren, and they are excited to see people support the cause.

“It’s just nice to be able to raise awareness for this cause.”

Washenfelder hopes that they can get some momentum going to get an annual event to help raise funds and awareness.