Page 52 - Print21 Magazine May-June 2021

Mental Health
Steve Gamble from mental health advocacy group Man Anchor looks at the impact of the 24-hour swimathon championed by Konica Minolta channel manager Andrew Ward.
Keeping your
to talk mental fitness within the community, and provide a safe space for those living with mental illness. I had the pleasure of spending a few hours at the event, and the number conversations I had with people
who had never spoken about the challenges with their mental fitness was astonishing, and this is from someone who works in the space.
The event ran for its third year on the 28 March this year after it had been postponed for safety reasons the week before with a once in one- hundred-year storm hitting the area. But with the gods on Andrew’s side, the 2021 Head Above Water swim ran, and it eclipsed anything Andrew or his team could have imagined. The 2021 swim saw a staggering 750 participants swimming 17,501 laps, raising $180,000.
To date the swim over the
last three years has seen 1900 participants swim, 54,000 laps swum and $355,000 raised in fundraising.
Now I have to be completely transparent here, Man Anchor
is a programme partner of both Gotcha4Life and Head Above Water, so Man Anchor has benefited
from the success of the swim
and its fundraising. However, in saying this, I sit at the coalface
on this one, as I’ve had the pleasure of witnessing the impact this programme has had on the community and I can vouch that
it has saved countless lives and changed the lives of many. The event has provided hope to those who had previously experienced a frightening, isolating battle with mental health, it has empowered people to both reach out and speak out, and it has provided a platform for real change.
“The event has provided hope to those who had previously experienced a frightening, isolating battle with mental health”
Head Above Water
Ifind myself in a privileged position with my roles at Man Anchor and Bottcher Australia in that I get to meet and talk with many people within the
industry who are happy to share either their own lived experiences with mental illness, or the experience of supporting a friend or family member.
We often neglect to acknowledge the important role that sharing our stories with others has on addressing the perceived stigmas around mental health and on empowering those who are becoming unwell to reach out for support.
One of the people who has used his own lived experiences with mental illness to empower others to reach out and get support is Andrew Ward, or Wardy, as he is widely known
in the industry. He is the channel manager at Konica Minolta and has been working within the industry since completing high school and taking his first job with Jaeger Fine Papers in Brookvale on Sydney’s Northern Beaches.
I have had the pleasure of knowing Wardy for 15 years after first meeting him as a member of the Junior
Print Executives. Over the years
our paths crossed at tradeshows, and in our local area of Collaroy, however, it wasn’t until Andrew
52 Print21 MAY/JUNE 2021
contacted me four years ago to share his personal story of mental illness and his passion for change in the way we address mental health in our community, that we truly connected.
Andrew shared his story and his passion for change with me, and his idea of creating an activity-based fundraising event which would be
a 24-hour swim called Head Above Water. Wardy was passionate about educating the community to better understand mental health after his own experience, so that they could
be prepared and understand changes in their mental health. Now if you have ever tried to organise any event, especially an event that runs non-stop for 24 hours, you can only imagine the work and dedication it takes. However, driven by Wardy’s own story, he set about turning his idea into a reality with the help of some of his amazingly supportive friends.
The inaugural Head Above Water 24-hour swim was run on 16 March 2019, with some of the worst weather you could imagine, but not even torrential rain could keep people away. The event was a massive success with 600 swimmers participating
and $19,026 raised to support mental health education programmes through their charity partner Gotcher4Life.
The event for me was far more than a fundraiser, it was an opportunity
Above
Swimming for mental health: Gus Worland (left) and Andrew Ward
I asked Gus Worland, the founder of Gotcha4life, for a sentence to describe Andrew and his impact.
He said, “Wardy is a community champion, and I am so proud to have him as a Gotcha4life ambassador. The money raised will build mental fitness here in Australia.”
Andrew and his team are now launching the swim into schools across Sydney and then nationally to support positive mental fitness and healthy conversations around mental health. Exciting times ahead. 21