An organizer with the upcoming #GetInTouchforHutch fundraiser is hoping this year’s event will garner more interest than last year, when about 600 people participated.
Myrna Hutchison and her husband Stu and son Kevin help organize the event in memory of their son Steven Hutchison, who took his own life last February while attending university.
The family was joined by friends of Steven, a well-known lacrosse player, in organizing the inaugural one and five kilometre walk and run in Arthur, with money raised going to youth mental health agencies.
The inaugural event raised $65,000 to help raise awareness of those agencies and to help eliminate the stigma surrounding mental illness.
“No one would have known about the internal struggles that Steven was experiencing,” the family wrote on the event website at http://getintouchforhutch.com.
“He was well known for his amazing smile, for being a great student, a talented athlete and for having a strong presence in the community.
“Out of this sad tragedy we have started on a journey to find a way to get our youth talking … There is an overall need to remove the stigma that is attached to mental illness as a whole and to provide ways for our youth to talk about and share their feelings or concerns in a manner that meets the needs of children and teens today.”
It is estimated that 10 to 20 per cent of Canadian youth are affected by a mental illness or disorder.
“That’s our main goal, to get our information out there so it is available for kids,” Myrna told the Advertiser at the Mohawk lacrosse tournament in Elora last Saturday.
“We’re getting into the schools as much as we can and we’re seeing things now with online posts.”
Organizers of this year’s event, which will be held on June 28 at the Arthur community centre, will also be hosting a silent auction on the website, which is set to kick-off on June 12.
“[That] is Steven’s birthday so we kick-off the silent auction then,” Myrna added.
“We had an emotional time last year so we’re hoping we get the same crowd or larger.”
She said support from businesses has been overwhelming.
Registration for the #GetInTouchforHutch event is available online at www.events.runningroom.com/site/?raceld=10658. Registration is $20 for the 1km distance and $44 for the 5km race. Children under 12 are free. The first 500 registrants will receive a free race T-shirt.
Registration is also available on race day. The race is set to start at 10am.
