Rohan Kallicharan
Fun Before Fifty - The Final Fundraiser
Fundraising for Mind
Story
Didn't want to be here, couldn't find a reason. Until I found a reason.
Once more unto the breach dear friends, once more. But this time I promise it will only be once more.
Back in 2006, I didn't want to be here and couldn't find a reason. It was the North West Ambulance Service who gave me that reason by refusing to give up on a life that I could no longer bear to live.
Every day since is a gift of God's grace, one of which I am not worthy. However, I give everything every day to honour that grace and to be the best human being that I can be.
In doing so, I found a very special purpose and calling through which I have been able to give back to the charity who gave me so much in the months and years after that fateful night in January 2006.
If North West Ambulance Service saved my life physically, it was Mind, the mental health charity, who gave me hope and dignity, the very essence of life through which I was able to rebuild my own amid the debris of 16 years of undiagnosed mental illness and multiple suicide attempts.
It was Mind who were able to direct me through the minefield of support services available, it was Mind who therefore led me to the diagnosis of Bipolar Disorder, one which gave meaning to the carnage which had preceded it.
They facilitated a peer group and information, they allowed me to feel supported and loved where all I'd felt was fear and loneliness. They gave me safety at a time when what I knew was homelessness.
They are at the heart of a journey which took me from sleeping on the streets around Victoria Station and from being a statistic waiting to happen, to being the person that I have become today.
That person is a happily married man with a successful career, a man deeply embedded within his local church, a Mind media award winner with a string of successful campaigns behind him, a Trustee on the board of directors for this special charity.
To 13 July 2023), since 2013, I had completed 53 marathons for Mind as well as, more recently, a few cycle sportives including RideLondon.
In that time, your generosity has supported my legs to the tune of £44,454.94.
Why a final campaign?
Having been fundraising for Mind since 2013, I decided to embark upon one final fundraiser for The London Marathon 2024.
How I'll be raising this
I'll be hosting a few special events so watch this space! Beyond that, I'll be donating all of my speaking fees as a recognised speaker around mental health and wellbeing.
Finally, I will of course be making a final plea to you for your generous donations.
Why
We are on the precipice of a mental health crisis the likes of which we have never seen before.
The cost of living, the treatment of racialised communities, people in poverty, young people … they are all facing a world without hope.
Mind is at the forefront of campaigning to change this.
Mind are pushing for real reforms to the outdated Mental Health Act and campaigning for anyone with a mental health problem to get the best possible care, in a way that works for them.
Mind are campaigning for everyone aged 11-25 to get the right support for their mental health, by pushing for the government to #FundTheHubs.
Mind are pushing the government to change the benefits system and give people with a mental health problem a real, living income while they can’t work.
The mental health system is stacked against people from racialised communities. Mind want to change the discriminatory Mental Health Act and improve the support they get.
And why does this matter to me? Simply, for years I was scared to tell anyone in my community that I was in a world of trouble, I looked in the mirror with fear and hate, I was homeless living on the streets around Victoria Coach Station. I was arrested and detained before even having a diagnosis. I attempted to end my life three times because I could see no way out of the prison of mental illness.
With that power behind me, I am committed to doing everything in my power to support others through the very real darkness of mental ill health.