American physician and author Mark Hyman once said, "the power of community to create health is far greater than any physician, clinic or hospital".
Never have truer words been spoken.
When Healthier Illawarra Men (HIM) was reborn in 2021, part of the commitment the committee made was the funds raised by the charity would be solely reinvested right here in the Illawarra.
We wanted to ensure the money that was raised in this community stayed in this community for the betterment of the health of this community.
Not only that, HIM's charter ensures we have a clear understanding of the type of charity and program the funds we raise will support.
Our charter clearly states HIM's focus as:
1. Raise awareness of men's health issues, including mental health, and to encourage men to be more proactive regarding their own health.
2. Raise awareness of appropriate behaviours to prevent domestic, family and sexual violence.
That makes it very clear then on the types of initiatives we will support financially.
Since reforming, Healthier Illawarra Men has run two major events.
The first was a breakfast featuring Gus Worland and Karl Stefanovic, with the funds raised going to Gotcha4Life to run mental health workshops for organisations in the Illawarra.
As a result, thousands of people in our community benefited from that training and are helping to contribute to a happier, healthier community.
Our second major function, and our first International Men's Day event last year, featured the Illawarra's living legend, Alexander "The Great" Volkanovski.
The funds from that event were spread across several local charities.
Illawarra men's mental health group the Barstool Brothers, domestic and family violence support group Escabags, acclaimed young men's health organisation the Top Blokes Foundation and local Indigenous men's group the Illawarra Koori Men's Support Group were benefactors of HIM grants.
If you go to our HIM YouTube channel you will see some of our charity partners talking about how the funds have helped their organisations, as well as some videos from the first two functions HIM held.
November 19 this year will be International Men's Day and the theme chosen for this year is "Healthy Men, Healthy World", with a focus on addressing the mental health of men and over-representation in suicide statistics.
November 19 this year will be International Men's Day and the theme chosen for this year is "Healthy Men, Healthy World", with a focus on addressing the mental health of men and over-representation in suicide statistics.
HIM will commemorate International Men's Day this year on Friday, November 17, with a special lunch at the Novotel Wollongong Northbeach ballroom.
Given the theme of IMD, we wanted to partner with a speaker who could deliver an inspirational message about life and living it to the fullest and we have sure found that in shark attack survivor and motivational speaker Brett Connellan.
Brett is a wonderful example to us all about grabbing life by both hands and rising above the challenges we face.
Tickets are nearly sold out so please don't delay and get your tickets via our website healthierillawarramen.org.au.
To coincide with our event, HIM is running our next charitable grant round right now.
Charities or not-for-profit organisations who deliver men's health programs or support programs for survivors of domestic violence can apply for funding from HIM's current grant round.
It's open to all and the details can be found under the Grant Applications tab on our website.
Submissions are simply via email, answering the questions we have outlined on the website.
Submissions close on November 8 and we encourage submissions to be made as soon as possible.
We will be making the announcement of the successful applicants at out 2023 IMD Lunch.
As HIM grows and our events grow (look out for a race day coming early next year), we hope to be able to support a wider array of local charities.
What we know to be true about the Illawarra is we are very good when it comes to looking after our own.
We have a strong history of rallying together for the betterment of community or helping those in needs with the i98FM Illawarra Convoy perhaps being the most perfect example of that. Coincidentally this year, Convoy falls on International Men's Day.
Ultimately, what we hope to achieve with HIM is exactly what Convoy and the many other worthy charitable causes in our region set out to do.
A happier, healthier community for us all.
- *Mark Sleigh is the chair of Healthier Illawarra Men and general manager of Destination Wollongong.
