A Peterhead mental health charity that says it has helped prevent 28 suicides in the area will open a permanent office in the town this weekend.
Men United, whose slogan is “Don’t Man Up, Speak Up”, was founded online in August 2019 by Blue Toon natives Sandy Garvock and Aaron Ritchie, and so far has helped 620 men that have been struggling with mental health issues.
With the charity “growing rapidly” following Covid, project manager Mr Garvock, 45, said the permanent base in the town’s Seagate – located in the former Union Bar – will allow a safe space for men to come and speak about the issues they face.
Prior to getting a permanent base – where everything will be under one roof – Men United was operating out of an office at Peterhead Prison Museum, as well as holding a weekly meeting in the cafe at the town’s Fishermen’s Mission.
The new base will be officially opened on Sunday by the Lord Lieutenant of Aberdeenshire Sandy Manson and will be open between 10am-2pm daily between Monday and Saturday.
An open day every Saturday will also take place, with the plan that women can bring men along if they are struggling and so they do not have to come by themselves.
‘Issues that Covid created’
Mr Garvock told The P&J that he started the charity because he “realised that there wasn’t enough places for men to go and speak to someone and have somebody to speak to”.
Like other charities and businesses across the UK and most of the world, Covid-19 threw a “massive curveball” for the organisation, as they had to change the way they operated “rapidly”.
Despite the challenges of Covid-19, Mr Garvock says the main problem that Men United is facing is the “issues that Covid created”, such as social isolation caused by people working from home.
Another issue is the cost of living challenges that people are facing, resulting in people struggling to pay bills, with the charity’s project manager describing it as a “double whammy”.
It is not only men in Peterhead that the charity helps, with it also supporting people in seven countries worldwide since it began, including across the UK, Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States.
“There’s guys from Peterhead that have gone to work in other countries and they meet guys who struggle and they tell them ‘you need to contact these guys in Peterhead’ and they contact us online,” Mr Garvock explains.
‘Here as guys who know how it feels’
Mr Garvock said he “knows how it feels” to deal with mental health issues having contemplated suicide 13 years ago, as do his volunteers.
He added: “We’re not counsellors, we’re not here as counsellors, we’re here as guys who know how it feels and to be able to help, encourage and support you through it.
“My message to guys would be, come and speak to somebody, it doesn’t have to be us, it can be anybody. Speak to any of the services that are available, but our doors are always open.
“We’re non-judgemental, you come in, nobody speaks about it, it’s confidential and we give you a safe place to speak about it.”
Men United also meet at Beekies Neuk in Newmachar every Tuesday evening from 7.30pm.
To find out more about the charity and what services they offer, contact Sandy Garvock at sandy@menunited.scot
Conversation