Wendy Sullivan wants to raise money for the Mental Health Foundation because it’s a ‘great cause’.

The wilderness is Wendy Sullivan’s  happy place, so it made sense to her to fundraise for the Mental Health Foundation while doing Walk1200km.

“I just thought it was a great cause,” says Wendy, a Marlborough Tramping Club member who finds time spent in nature is central to her wellbeing. “Issues around mental health don’t have to be diagnosed by a doctor; we all suffer moments of sadness or get overwhelmed by   the complexity of life.”

Wendy realised the importance of mental health recently when she attended the funeral  of an 18-year-old woman who took her own life.

She has set a fundraising target of $500 and will be asking for donations as she prepares to climb Tapuae-o-Uenuku, her region’s highest peak, in early March. Among her supporters is a tramping club buddy whose donation was $116.67 – one of their Cost of Living Payment installments.

“A good thing about fundraising is that when people donate, they think about the cause,”   Wendy says.

As a tramper, she didn’t think Walk1200km would be too difficult.

“But once I started tallying up my walks, I realised it’s not going to be as easy as I thought.”

Wendy says being sponsored motivates her to stay on track with Walk1200km.

She’s been doing the challenge since October 2022 and is curious to see just how many kilometres she covers in a year.

• You can support Wendy in reaching her fundraising goal here.

Join Wendy and others in walking 1200km in 2023. Sign up to Walk1200km now.