Month: June 2023

A local group that supports men’s mental health has been given £400 towards its valuable work in the county, thanks to the Asda Foundation Green Token Giving scheme.

Hereford Men’s Mental Health (HMMH) was set up by Services for Independent Living (SIL) Chief Executive, Euan McPherson, and Hereford City Councillor Paul Stephens as a response to rising numbers of men presenting with mental health issues.

Euan said: “The group has grown in numbers and provides a safe environment where men can talk, listen, or just relax and enjoy the friendly atmosphere, among people who get it.

“Members chat about a range of subjects, have a laugh and some banter. We also enable people to talk about any issues they are dealing with. There are occasionally activities such as bowling or going out for a curry or Chinese.”

In 2021 members from the group published a book “Further Beyond Words”, which was funded by the Herefordshire Community Foundation and Great Places. The book, a collection of poems and prose exploring mental health, is illustrated by students from the Hereford College of Arts.

The Asda Foundation invests over £1 million annually to support over 4000 good causes through its Green Token Giving. Competition to secure a share of this fantastic gift is always  tough, so Euan and Paul thank the residents of Herefordshire for using their tokens to secure funding for HMMH.

For more information about the group, meeting days, times and venue, visit: https://www.s4il.co.uk/hmmh/

SIL’s Charity of the Year, Echo, had some messy helpers on Saturday the 27^th May when a team of fun runners from SIL joined around 70 other runners to take part in this year’s Colour Fest – an “Out of This World” experience.

Karen Hunt, Bee Phillips and Millie Davies couldn’t wait to get sign in at Grange Court, Leominster, collect their sunglasses, alien antennae and of course, purchase the obligatory kaleidoscope of paint.

Wearing white tops (which didn’t stay white for long), the team members had great fun throwing the bright powders over each other before joining the pre-run warm up – stretching and dancing to music designed to get the runners pumped for action.

The Mayor of Leominster alongside Ziggy the Alien, gave a speech and then it was time for the countdown to the 11am start. With music still blaring, the crowds gathered around the course to cheer on the teams and throw more paint powder onto the runners.

The course took the runners through the town where water stations had been planned – there was even one providing fresh fruit!

With the race completed, certificates were handed out and the team found themselves alongside Martina Pritchard, Katie Loughran, Hayley Secker and Charlie Clynes – other SIL employees, also doing their bit for Echo.

As Bee Phillips said after, “It was a lovely day with beautiful weather and we felt brilliant after completing it”.

The team raised a total of £166.25 for ECHO.

So, a huge well done to all our runners, you did SIL proud and made a wonderful contribution to our Charity of the Year.