To raise funds for MIND Teesside and Bright Red.

Hello, my name is Cameron and I run a local Sunday league football team called Rimswell FC in Stockton on Tees.

The team started in the summer of 2022 and is made up of lads like myself who I know from school, some that I have met through playing football and others I have met throughout life. The age range of those involved in different aspects of the club is between 18-60 years old, both male and female.

As a team, we plan to do a 7 mile stretcher run from the Rimswell Pub to the Riverside stadium on Saturday the 13th of January 2024. We are doing this event to support our go fund me project in which we hope to raise funds that will be directly split 50/50 between two charities, MIND Teesside (Mental health charity) and Bright Red (Cancer charity).

What is a ‘stretcher run’? A stretcher run is a training method I discovered in my time in basic training in the RAF. Six to eight people will hold the stretcher in pairs of two while running forward carrying the stretcher in one hand each. There will be other pairs of two running behind the stretcher bearers, once the leading pair at the front of the stretcher become fatigued, in a timed controlled sequence, they will drop to the back of the running queue while all other pairs move forward one space, all while the running continues. Each pair will be matched based on physical ability and fitness, so team work to control pace is vital for this task to work.

Why are we fund raising for these charities? - On a personal note, as I have matured and become older, I have noticed how important both fitness and a feeling of belonging to a group can play a vital role in helping to deal with mental health issues, regardless of gender or age. Unfortunately, a few years ago during my time in the Royal Air Force (RAF), I lost a close friend to suicide. We shared so many good times together but as we were separated in different locations in our RAF career, I did start to notice a negative/uncharacteristic change in their personality and behaviour in this person, and whether it was a lack of maturity or knowledge, I didn’t understand these changes could of been signs of a mental health issue. The fact I could of possibly helped my friend at this time remains on my mind to this day and has motivated myself to try and help others in anyway possible given the circumstances, which leads me to the team.

The reason I chosen to start this football team was to give other lads like myself something to look forward to and to gain the sense of togetherness you can receive when working with other teammates to a shared goal, to build a competitive football team by working hard together and to create a good social environment by having fun along the way.

MIND Teeside - This is a mental health charity that focuses on helping those in the north east of England. I feel this is very important with the North East of England having the highest male suicide rate in recent years in the UK. Therefore, any money raised by this event is at least going to help, in some way, those in our local area.

Bright Red - This a blood cancer charity in which one of the members of the football team, and the person close to them who is currently dealing with cancer themselves, chosen as our other charity partner. Unfortunately, there are also other members of the team who have been, and are currently dealing with cancer in their families, that’s why I believe a 50/50 split would be the best idea so we can do our best to help in more then one areas.

100% of any funds raised will go directly to the 50/50 split for the two charities.

I understand this can be a financially difficult time of year for people, so any donations will be massively appreciated by myself, the team, and the two charities involved.

Many thanks,

Cam