Luke Richardson, Ashley Gilbank, and Coun. Allan Hubley
Incline skater Ashley Gilbank rolled onto Parliament Hill this afternoon, having left about 3,000 kilometres of Canada’s roads behind her.
The cross-country campaign, called Skate4Life, was founded by Gilbank with the goal of raising funds and awareness for youth mental health and suicide prevention. She hopes to raise $60,000 for Do It For Daron to help fund youth mental health projects and research at the Royal Ottawa Hospital.
Gilbank, 25, started her westward trek on June 4 from St. John’s, Newfoundland. The planned route will see her skate 10,000 kilometres to Victoria, B.C.
She established the campaign after the suicide of a childhood friend. “I decided that I wanted to do something big,” she said in an interview. “Something to really connect Canadians coast-to-coast.”
Ottawa is Gilbank’s hometown and she lives just around the corner from the Hill. “We really missed home when we were far away,” she said.
A crowd of supporters wearing purple D.I.F.D. shirts greeted Gilbank at Parliament’s Centennial Flame.
Do It For Daron founder Luke Richardson and Kanata South Coun. Allan Hubley – each of whom has lost a child to suicide – also welcomed Gilbank.
“I know this is very personal to them – probably a little more personal than I’ll ever understand,” she said. “I know that they’re really trying to take their tragedies and turn them into a positive cause.”
Gilbank said raising funds has been difficult. The promotion of youth mental health is a very new cause to Canadians and only one in five youth who need help actually receive it, she said.
“Have conversations with your kids, and your parents, and your teachers, or whoever,” she said. “Find someone you can talk to. It’s so important. If you think your feelings don’t matter, they do. Just have that one little conversation.”
She still has about 7,000 kilometres left on her route and expects to complete it by early October.