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Those involved with the Langley Environmental Partners Society are known for getting their hands dirty for nature, but during the month of November they’re rolling up their sleeves for a different cause: men’s mental health.
All next month the local organization is taking part in Movember, a campaign first started to raise awareness about prostate cancer, which has since expanded to include mental health and suicide prevention, as well as testicular cancer – and they want the public to join them.
LEPS is holding a variety of events in November to raise awareness about men’s mental health and how getting outdoors can help promote wellness.
It’s a subject very close to Lisa Dreves, LEPS stewardship coordinator.
“I’m mostly pushing this [campaign] because this year marks 25 years since my dad committed suicide, he was 48 years old,” she said.
According to Movember, “globally, on average, one man dies by suicide every minute of every day.” In Canada, three out of four suicides are by men.
The charity hopes to reduce the rate of male suicides by 25 per cent by 2030, and Dreves wants to be part of the solution.
“We just want to promote getting outdoors and better mental health,” Dreves said. “It’s, of course, not just for men that we’re doing it, but we’re using Movember as the platform to be able to spread the word about getting outside.”
And to help people do just that, LEPS is hosting a several events where the community can get their hands dirty or just enjoy the outdoors.
“The nature walk is out at High Knoll Park and Brydon Lagoon. The Langley Field naturalists do walks all year, it’s a wonderful organization that tries to promote a love of nature, by experiencing nature,” Dreves said.
“And so the walk is a fairly easy walk, not a lot of hills or anything like that, or muck – just to check out what birds we see, what plants we see in the area, and just take more of a slower appreciation of the outdoors.”
A complete list of November events include:
- Saturday, Nov. 6: Muckle Creek ivy pull,
- Sunday, Nov. 7: Bog clean-up with Derby Reach Brea Island Park Association,
- Saturday, Nov. 13: West Creek Wetlands blackberry pull with Glen Valley Watersheds Society,
- Sunday, Nov. 14: Downtown Aldergrove clean-up with Bertrand Creek Enhancement Society,
- Saturday, Nov. 20: Ivy pull with Yorkson Watershed Enhancement Society,
- Sunday, Nov. 21: Steele Park ivy pull with Salmon River Watershed Society,
- Saturday, Nov. 27: High Knoll and Brydon Lagoon nature walk with Langley Field Naturalists, and
- Sunday, Nov. 28: Tree planting at the bridges by Al Anderson Pool.
To register for the Nov. 7 bog clean-up email Roxci Bevis at outreach@drbipa.org. To inquire about any of the other scheduled events contact Dreves, stewardship@leps.bc.ca
LEPS is currently in the process of organizing a Movember donation account, in the meantime Dreves asks the public to consider donating directly to the campaign at ca.movember.com/donate.
Have a story tip? Email: joti.grewal@blackpress.ca
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