Black Dog Ride Welcomes First Aboriginal MHFA Instructor
Australia's Indigenous communities suffer the highest suicide rates in the world, a tragedy that must be acknowledged and addressed.
The road ahead, of healing and hope, will be a long one but each step takes us closer to strong healthy resilient communities.
To that end, Black Dog Ride committed to funding the training of Aboriginal Mental Health First Aid (AMHFA) Instructors who will teach Indigenous community and sector workers AMHFA. AMHFA empowers participants with the knowledge to identify when an Aboriginal person is experiencing a mental health crisis, and teaches them how to respond appropriately to keep the person safe from self harm.
Black Dog Ride is immensely proud to announce that the first Black Dog RIde funded AMHFA Instructor has been trained and is already training others in her community.
Adair Williamson, from Mt Isa and now based in Townsville, QLD, leapt at the opportunity Black Dog Ride offered, first training in MHFA locally then travelling to Brisbane to train as an Instructor in March.
Before the month was over, Adair was already training others in AMHFA. Like the ripple effect of dropping a stone in water, Adair's leadership and training will eventually touch the entire Far North QLD region, forging a path of healing and hope within Indigenous communities.
Black Dog Ride would like to take the opportunity to thank Adair and her family for their courage, time and passion for Indigenous mental health and wellbeing, in taking this powerful step forward for our communities. Black Dog Ride also gives our gratitude to Black Dog Ride's community whose fundraising has supported this project.
You can find more Black Dog ride funded MHFA Instructors on the website here.
