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A Family Challenge for a Good Cause
Posted 23 May 2018
Ocean Reef’s Caroline Jackson Pierce knows the personal satisfaction experienced in getting active for a good cause.
Accompanied by her children Ella (10) and Josh (7), Caroline will be embarking on a family challenge to raise money for Act-Belong-Commit and youth mental health awareness in this year’s HBF Run for a Reason on 27 May 2018.
“I’ve taken part in several mass participation running events over the years and they are always an enjoyable and quite often a moving experience due to all the various fundraising ‘reasons’ that people come together for,” said Caroline. “I’m looking forward to my children experiencing the joy of taking part and giving to a good cause, whilst having fun in our Act-Belong-Commit team!”
Caroline discovered a love for running a few years ago after hearing about a friend joining weekly ‘parkruns’ in the UK. Wondering what it was all about, she quickly realised that parkruns happened all around the world – including in Joondalup!
Parkruns are coordinated around the world by a team of volunteers, are open to all ages and abilities and are a great way to Act-Belong-Commit.
Caroline explains, “There are regular walkers, joggers, people with prams and some super-fast people – everyone is welcome,” she said. “I started out jogging slowly, and with lots of encouragement from other participants have even picked up the odd PB here and there. Eventually Ella and Josh wanted to get involved – they encourage me to keep going. We now join friends from our school community, including the deputy principal and 200 other people every week. It’s a fantastic way to Act-Belong-Commit, especially when I put up my hand to volunteer and help out the run director and their team, every now and again.”
2018 marks a significant year for Act-Belong-Commit, as it is the 10th anniversary of the campaigns statewide roll-out. And what better way to celebrate than by joining the HBF Run for a Reason to raise money for youth mental health in WA!
“Helping people to be mentally healthy is so important and if everyone can incorporate the Act-Belong-Commit message into their lives it will help them throughout the usual ups and downs of life. Getting this message to young people through schools and programs like the Youth Connectors is the key to supporting young people to taking on the message and prevention of future mental health issues.”
You can support Caroline and Act-Belong-Commit by making a donation here.