A Burnham-On-Sea resident has completed a 60-mile walking challenge to raise awareness and funds for mental health charity Mind.
Jacob Kemp took on the challenge throughout September, walking solo along the Burnham Estuary and surrounding areas, raising over £400 for the charity.
His efforts were part of Mind’s national campaign encouraging people to walk, run, or cycle 60 miles to support mental health services.
Jacob told Burnham-On-Sea.com: “At first, the distance felt daunting, but walking became a way to reconnect with nature, friends, and my own wellbeing.”
Jacob says social pressures and online culture can contribute to feelings of isolation and insecurity within the LGBTQ+ community. He hopes his fundraising and storytelling will encourage more open conversations and support.
He adds: “The task sounded simple enough – walk, run, or cycle sixty miles in September to raise awareness and funds for the charity. Such a distance sounded daunting at first, especially as I was going to do it alone. My first four-mile walks along the Estuary in Burnham-On-Sea felt long and challenging. Still, as I continued, I found them easier and more enjoyable, all helped by my trusty headphones, blasting Coldplay and Sabrina Carpenter as I walked.”
“Completing the challenge at the end of the month felt like a huge milestone, and I managed to raise over £400 for Mind in the process. It enabled me to connect with friends and also reach out to others I knew were struggling with their own mental health. It is challenges like these that test our sense of adventure and foster connections across the local community.”
“Many people often find it a challenge to talk about their mental health challenges, as for many, it is an intensely private battle. Dozens of contributory factors collide, with the result being debilitating burnout, depression, or anxiety disorders.”
“The pressures of modern life build and build, and are not helped by the culture of comparison, which is perpetuated on social media. These themes have been explored within the media extensively, with a recent focus on violence against women and girls within the online sphere.”
“However, one area of mental health that has received relatively little attention is the mental health challenges facing gay men. As a gay man myself, I feel it is important to speak about this issue, as many who like to tout the progress made on gay rights often evade the deeper challenges facing the community.”
“Social media imagery and communication have sexualized gay men to the extent that genuine and enduring connections are much harder to make if you are not physically desirable to others. This leads many gay men to feel that their life has little value, and causes mental health challenges as a result. Such binary judgements of attraction, rolled up in a pressure to look, speak, and behave a certain way, all contribute to this feeling of insecurity.”
He adds: “My fundraising sought to highlight these issues, and I am so pleased that the amount I managed to raise may go some way to helping those young people suffering in these challenging times.”
Local charity 2BU Somerset, which supports LGBTQ+ youth, echoed the importance of such initiatives. CEO Lisa Snowdon-Carr says: “By fostering open, non-judgmental conversations, we can create safe spaces where young people feel valued, heard, and supported.”
Jacob’s journey not only raised vital funds but also helped raise awareness of the need for inclusive mental health support.
For more information on Mind’s campaigns or to support 2BU Somerset, visit mind.org.uk and 2bu-somerset.co.uk.
