Batemans Bay Lions Club is once again proudly catering the lunch for the Black Dog riders on the 19th March at Corrigan’s Beach Reserve Black Dog Ride began in 2009 as one man's ride to raise awareness of depression, developing into national suicide prevention charity involving thousands of Australian motorcycle riders who've raised over $2,200,000 for mental health services, fostering mental health awareness around the country. About Black Dog Ride Seven years ago, Steve Andrews found himself at the funeral of his best mate Jack Michael's wife. Anna was a beautiful woman, a wife and mother whose life was cut short by a silent struggle with depression. Tragically, Steve's own mother had also taken her own life years earlier. Every year in Australia, 1,000,000 adults and 100,000 young people live with depression, 50% won't seek treatment and nearly 3,000 will take their own lives every single year. Standing at Anna's wake, Steve felt the need to raise community awareness of depression, to create a national conversation so that people living with mental ill health feel able to talk about it and seek support. In 2009, Steve embarked upon a solo month long motorbike journey around Australia, raising $34,000 for the Suicide Call Back Service and engaging thousands of Australians with his message of awareness. Steve took with him a soft toy black dog representing the black dog of depression which Winston Churchill famously diarised. Steve called this dog Winston, and his ride, Black Dog Ride.
To learn more of Black Dog and to donate to this very important cause please visit the Black Dog website
