Treadmills Run Non-stop Against Suicide

By Marcus Braid on August 8, 2014 in News

The treadmills never stopped and celebrities turned up in large numbers as the fight for suicide prevention landed a big blow last month.

The second annual Plebs, Pro’s and Personalities 24-Hour Run (PPP4SPA) raised over $100,000 for Suicide Prevention Australia.

A host of celebrities and NRL stars including Sonny Bill Williams, Reni Maitua and Willie Tonga ensured the treadmills at Maroubra Sports Club never stopping turning.

“Heaps of celebrities showed up, had a run and a good time,” event organiser Aaron Moore said. “It was fantastic.”

Mr Moore said the money raised reflected the fact suicide prevention is a cause everybody is passionate about.

“These celebrities get called for a thousand things a year to come and support and the ones they are interested in are the ones they show up to,” he said. “It goes to show they were all interested and that’s why they were all there.

“It has grabbed the attention of a lot of them because either they’ve suffered depression or they’ve got a friend or family member who has suffered from depression or committed suicide, or attempted to commit suicide.”

The fundraising event, now in its second year, was launched after a series of tragedies in recent years.

“Obviously local lifeguard Matt Dee’s brother and sister both committed suicide within a year of each other,” Mr Moore said. “I’ve lost a lot of good mates over the years, and so has everybody in the area. We’ve all lost a lot of people in this area and we decided to do something about it.

“The money goes straight to Suicide Prevention Australia. They are an umbrella organisation for many of the other [suicide prevention] organisations. They’re the governing body of Beyond Blue, RUOK and Black Dog. Basically we filtered the money through all of those organisations.”

The treadmills were manned by various local community groups, and there was both a celebrity and NRL player treadmill. All lasted the continuous 24-hour journey.

“We changed it to involve more of the community this year rather than just us running a marathon, so we came to a treadmill challenge. We had two treadmills last year that has grown into seven treadmills this year,” Mr Moore said.