2 minute read
Help your co-op team help your community
Drought, floods, COVID-19 and constant change – it’s been a tough year down on the farm. Christmas is coming and while for many this is a time to celebrate and kick back, it’s also when the mental health of many rural Kiwis is pushed to the limit.
That’s why Farmlands is shining a spotlight on mental health this holiday period and we want customers to help us make it shine even brighter. Farmlands has teamed up with I Am Hope, founded by mental health champion Mike King, on an in-store Christmas charity campaign to raise funds for counselling sessions for rural youth. Each Farmlands store will also choose its own local charity, and customers who donate will decide which charity will get their money. Farmlands has started the ball rolling by donating $35,000 to I Am Hope, also known as Gumboot Friday. Welcoming the news, Mike King says mental health statistics around the world and New Zealand paint a grim and worrying picture. “It’s on us as a society and community to step up and offer a helping hand and a listening ear before tragedy strikes,” he says. “We need to come together and ring-fence the top of the cliff, rather than keep sending ambulances to the bottom. It’s because of people like the great folks at Farmlands that we are able to roll our sleeves up and help our young people who’re struggling in silence within our communities, by making help accessible to those who need it, when they need it.” Money raised for either cause will stay local. Farmlands will work with I Am Hope to ensure the money raised stays in that community. Mental health isn’t fixed by a new pair of socks from Santa, with 20 percent of young people likely to experience a mental health issue. Depression and anxiety are widespread: one in five young New Zealanders will be affected by depression by the age of 18; almost one in five meet the criteria for an anxiety disorder by age 19. Counselling is expensive, even more so in rural
HOW IT WORKS
Customers will be able to add a donation of $2, $5, $10 or more when making a purchase at Farmlands. In-store donors will receive a token, a symbol of the connections within the community that keep us together. They will indicate their charity of choice – I Am Hope or the local charity – by attaching the token to an in-store Christmas tree.
areas, where the cost per session can range from $150-$250. “Our young people need help now more than they’ve ever needed it,” Mike says. “Since 2013, we’ve reached 300,000 Kiwi youth to smash mental health stigmas and help them deal with the incessant inner critic in their minds and ears. I Am Hope ambassadors have spoken to 40,000 rangatahi (young people) this year alone, helping educate them on mental health and coping with rising pressures of today’s uncertain world. “Gumboot Friday has picked up the bill for more than 16,000 critical counselling sessions since 2018 and the recent launch of the online counselling services in the current lockdown has seen usage go through the roof, demonstrating the clear need for our young people to talk to somebody who will listen when they most need it,” he says.
