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WESTERN FORCE MEDIA RELEASE
Friday, 20 February 2015
RugbyWA and the Western Force have embarked on a two-year charity partnership with zero2hero, a WA-based not-for-profit organisation addressing mental health issues openly with young people.
Through open communication, zero2hero aims to assist in the prevention of suicide through effectively dealing with mental health problems.
zero2hero hosts specialised events – including ‘zero2hero day’ and ‘Camp Hero – Youth Leadership Camps’ – to create support networks that encourage and equip school-aged children to speak out about mental health issues, such as; anxiety, depression, bullying, self-harm or suicidal thoughts.
As part of the partnership, the Western Force will host a ‘super hero’ theme for its home match against the NSW Waratahs on Saturday, 9 May. The theme is in association with zero2hero day which encourages participants to ‘dress up, stand up and speak up’ regarding mental health issues.
RugbyWA staff members will also participate in volunteer opportunities with zero2hero, in addition to a number of other initiatives throughout the year.
“We’re very grateful for the opportunity to partner with RugbyWA and the Western Force,” zero2hero founder and CEO, Ashlee Harrison said. “Mental illness continues to remain a largely taboo topic in society, and we’re determined to work with young people to remove the stigma and provide them with an understanding of mental health issues and awareness of services available to them.
“We’re very excited about this partnership and being able to use it to shine the spotlight on mental health issues, and assist young people to be better equipped to deal with any problems they may encounter.”
RugbyWA CEO Mark Sinderberry says that the partnership with zero2hero is an opportunity to assist in driving awareness of mental health issues and the work of the organisation.
“We’re very pleased to be partnering with zero2hero over the next two years,” he said. “Ashlee and those involved with zero2hero are extremely passionate and committed to confronting this large community issue and we’re looking forward to being able to contribute to making young people aware and educating them about mental health.
“Through this partnership, we were keen to link with a locally-based charity where we felt we could make a real difference to their cause.
“We’re very keen to drive awareness of the fantastic work that zero2hero is doing, as well as having the opportunity to assist in breaking down some of the barriers around mental health issues.”
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Originally Posted by MI5_Dog
