Systematic supports Summit 53 mental health run

Lincolnshire-based design, print, mailing, and marketing services provider Systematic is supporting the Summit 53 challenge with one of its own team members Jill Bell taking part with friend Kate Brown.

Beginning on Sunday, October 1st the challenge will take place in the market town of Caistor which has been home to Systematic for almost 50 years.

The Systematic team appreciates that struggling with mental health issues feels like climbing a mountain too, with its managing director Chris Robey tragically losing the battle with his own mental health in September 2022.

A respected businessman and a pillar of the Caistor community, Robey was a running buddy for Bell and Brown and established the Caistor Running Club in 2011 to help people ‘run for fun’ and for free.

In order to run a marathon distance to an elevation equivalent to running up and down Snowdon from sea level, Bell and Brown will run 53 ‘Round Robey’ circuits around Caistor – a training circuit devised by Robey himself.

This half-mile, undulating loop around the town is still a firm fixture in the training plan of the popular running club.

The challenge will be a poignant one with Robey aged 53 when he passed away and Summit 53 culminating on October 1st, Robey’s birthday and Lincolnshire Day.

Through completing Summit 53, Bell and Brown with Systematic behind them will be supporting the work of Andy’s Man Club, a national suicide prevention charity which helps men to get on top of their feelings through the power of conversation.

The aim is to raise at least £5,300 for the charity to help fund peer-to-peer support groups and awareness events.

Commenting on the challenge, Systematic says: “Jill and Kate are reaching out to those who knew Chris, as well as runners, the Lincolnshire community, and the many people who know the devastating impact that mental health challenges have, not just every day, but every minute.”

A Just Giving page has been set up to raise money during the Summit 52 challenge and the pair will be keeping supporters in the loop on a Summit 53 Facebook page. Above all else, the prominent call to action is to raise awareness of Andy’s Man Club and remind everyone of their first rule, that ‘it’s okay to talk’.

Whilst suicide can affect anyone, according to CALM (Campaign Against Living Miserably), there are some factors that make someone more likely to take their own life. These include being male, identifying as LGBTQ+, being black, Asian, or from a minority ethnic background, previous bereavement by suicide, or drug and alcohol addiction.

The charity also estimates that one suicide directly affects 135 people, leaving a lasting impact on family, friends, colleagues, neighbours, and acquaintances.

Mental Health at Work offers a range of resources and tools to assist workplaces with supporting employees with mental health and the topic of suicide in its toolkit here.

The Printing Charity provides a range of practical, emotional, and financial support including a free, confidential employee helpline for businesses in the print, packaging, paper, publishing, and graphics sector as well as their families. 

This emotional support is available 24/7, 365 days a year and is delivered by BACP-accredited counsellors. Practical support is available from information and advice specialists Monday to Friday from 8am to 8pm.

To find out more about how to establish the helpline in your own business, you can email helpline@theprintingcharity.org.uk, or call the charity on 01293 542 820 with lots of information also available on the printing charity website. 

If you have any news, please email carys@linkpublishing.co.uk or join in with the conversation on Twitter and LinkedIn.