A group of men from Abergavenny and the surrounding area are walking Pen y Fan to raise money for ANDYSMANCLUB, a men’s mental health charity.
The men meet every week with a group of trained facilitators who provide a non-judgemental, secure space to encourage them to open up and form positive relationships with their peers.
More than 20 members of the charity will tackle Pen y Fan on Thursday, June 13 to show their appreciation and importance of the safe space provided by ANDYSMANCLUB. The aim is to raise £3,000 to support the charity in ensuring the 185 clubs nationwide are sustainable.
ANDYSMANCLUB was set up in Halifax, Yorkshire, by the family of Andrew Roberts, a man who sadly took his own life aged 23 in April 2016. Having no idea he was struggling to such an extent, Andy’s family looked deeper into male suicide; discovering that male suicide is the biggest killer of men under 54.
Eight years on, there are 185 groups across the UK encouraging more than 4,500 men to speak their minds and break the stigma of openly talking, promoting that #ItsOkayToTalk.
The Abergavenny group started on April, 4 with four facilitators and eight men attending the first session. Two years on, the club has eight facilitators with an average weekly attendance of 25 men from the town, Blaenavon, Pontypool, Monmouth and as far as Chepstow. Within this time, they’ve supported more than 170 men.
One of the facilitators said: “In addition to providing a place for men to come together in a safe environment to talk openly about issues or problems they have faced or currently facing, we are also creating a community of like-minded men who support and look out for each other.
“Our charity fundraising walk was the idea of one of our regular attendees, Colin Faulkner, who wanted to show his gratitude to ANDYSMANCLUB. Colin has been the driving force in making the arrangements for the walk.”
Club member Rhys added: “I’ve been attending the club for just over 18 months. It took me a while to get the confidence and courage to walk through the door. Due to a lot of life trauma I have spent over a decade struggling with emotions and attempting to take my own life. I think some of this comes from not being able to talk and bottling things up due to the stigma around men opening up about our feelings.
“After attending the group for the first time, I realised that it is okay to talk, show my feelings and cry. I cannot put into words what this group has fully done for me other than it has definitely saved my life, it has shown me there is a life to live and I have like-minded people which I now call friends.
“Taking part in the Pen y Fan walk is a chance to spend some time with my friends and show my appreciation by giving back to ANDYSMANCLUB by supporting them just as they have supported me, while helping to ensure it gives future attendees the same opportunity as given to me.”
ANDYSMANCLUB thank Abergavenny Rotary Club, Abergavenny Garden Centre and the former Mayor of Abergavenny for funding the walking shirts to commemorate the walk. Further thanks to Abergavenny Mountain Warehouse for the clothing and equipment discount offered to AMC members for the walk and Print & Sign Shop @HMP Parc for sourcing and printing the shirts at a reduced cost.
If you wish to make a donation to the charity, head to https://www.justgiving.com/page/amcabergavenny2024
ANDYSMANCLUB meet every Monday (except Bank Holidays) from 7pm-9pm at the Tithe Barn, Abergavenny. Parking is free in the Bus Station Car Park. For further information search ANDYSMANCLUB Abergavenny on Facebook or email [email protected]