Cycle against suicide participants need a hot meal and a bed for the night
Preparations are in full swing for welcoming 1,000 cyclists on the last leg of the Cycle Against Suicide event to Mullingar on Saturday May 9.
Loreto College Mullingar has been named as anchor school for the 2015 Cycle Against Suicide.
The Cycle starts in Belfast on Monday April 27 and covers the entire island of Ireland for two weeks before finishing in Dublin on Sunday May 10.
Loreto will welcome the cyclists on Saturday May 9 and Mullingar will host the overnight stop that evening.
Loreto College Mullingar, together with Cycle Against Suicide, will organise a mental health event comprising of presentations, videos, music, celebrity speakers and an exhibition of local mental health services the following morning.
Cycle Against Suicide is not about fundraising, it is about the awareness that "It's ok not to feel ok, and it's absolutely ok to ask for help".
Marese Bell, principal of Loreto College Mullingar said the impact of this type of activity is powerful and far reaching, not just in our schools, but also in the community at large.
"It gets the conversation around mental health going in the community and shows the support services that are available to those that need them.”
Cycle Against Suicide offers a homestay programme, which sees homeowners across the island providing a bed and hot meal to participants in the Cycle. Cycle Against Suicide Homestay Coordinator, Dudley Farrell said “There is still time for people living in the Mullingar area to offer accommodation to participants for a night when the Cycle passes through.”
“The number of cyclists registering for Cycle Against Suicide is increasing year on year. As a result, we need more accommodation for cyclists and crew.
If you would like to provide Homestay accommodation when Cycle Against Suicide visits Mullingar, send an email tohomestays@cycleagainstsuicide.com. If you would like to volunteer with Cycle Against Suicide, please send an email tovolunteer@cycleagainstsuicide.com. The Mullingar committee can be contacted on 087 1881850.