After teaming up with Gotcha4Life, a men’s mental-health charity, for the second year running, Chemist Warehouse says a total of $450,000 was raised this year through multiple initiatives.
This includes:
- Accepting donations through each of its 400-plus stores.
- Selling Gotcha4Life headbands and wristbands.
- A donation of $50,000 from Unilever.
- Selling Unilever’s limited-edition Lynx ‘Gotcha4Life’ body sprays.
Men can expect to benefit from Chemist Warehouse’s fundraising through the following programs:
The Gotcha4Life School’s program ‘Tomorrow Man’ provides an “impactful” workshop in schools. The program draws attention to statistics around male suicide and male stereotypes in a safe environment. Gotcha4Life will be able to provide 400 school programs through the funds raised.
The Gotcha4Life Project will fund training to increase the number of men manning the phone lines at Lifeline, reducing waiting times and giving men more opportunity to speak with a trained male counsellor. Lifeline is critically short of male crisis counsellors. Gotcha4Life will be able to provide funding for 100 new male Lifeline councillors through the funds raised.
Numerous agencies and organisations work within the mental health sector to tackle depression among men. Start-up programs will provide seed funding to approved agencies and organisations in a bid to aid providers across the country to deliver on an outcome that improves a person’s mental state.
Media personality and Gotcha4Life co-founder Gus Worland says he is overwhelmed at the support Chemist Warehouse has given the foundation. “We are so humbled by the support of our major corporate sponsor Chemist Warehouse for the second year in a row,” he said. “It wouldn’t be possible for us to do the work we do in communities across the country without them.
“Through the funds generously raised, we will be able to reach even more men who might be facing mental health issues, from young men at school to the older male who might want to speak to a male Lifeline councillor,” he added.
Chemist Warehouse Chief Operating Officer Mario Tascone says he is thrilled at the organisations fundraising efforts for 2018.
