IRONMAN 70.3 for Veterans in need of support

Hi, my name is Michael!

I have created this gofundme page for a couple of reasons. 1. To help spread awareness for Veteran mental health and suicide rates. 2. Help fundraise money for multiple veteran organizations, such as Military and Emergency Services Health Australia and SoldierOn, who help those who have served gain access to the support they need after they have been discharged from the military. 3. To get the public supporting Veteran owned businesses.

Reports have shown that in the past two decades, there have been approximately 1200+ deaths by suicide involving serving and ex-serving ADF members. Some reasons are:

On 8 July 2021, the Royal Commission on Defence and Veteran Suicide was established. The Royal Commission was set up after community calls for a national inquiry focusing on the systemic issues faced by Australian Defence Force members and veterans that too often result in loss of life to suicide. The Royal Commission is independent of the government, Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) and Defence.

As a former member of the Australian Army as a medic, I have gone through my own battle with mental health issues and made the big jump to access help which, now looking back, was the best decision I made. I wanted to make other veterans aware that seeking support may be daunting at first, but it will be very beneficial in the long run. Psychologists and psychiatrists can be hard to talk to at times and if you find that is the case, support organizations such as SoldierOn and Mates4Mates are great resources to go to, as they are full of veterans that understand everything you are going through.

SO! To spread awareness, I have not only created this page to fundraise for organizations that help veterans in need BUT I have also registered to compete in a 70.3 IRONMAN event in November 2023 and plan to afterwards complete a full IRONMAN the following year! I want to do this not only to raise awareness but also to help me in my journey with mental health.

It would be absolutely amazing if you could donate some money to this great cause. My goal is to reach $5000, and if we can get more than that.....wow! I would love for you all to continue sharing this page so we can reach this amount! Below I will leave the names of veteran-owned businesses you could support and purchase some fantastic products from!!

Thank you all!