For businesses, social distancing and home working has meant staff have not had the ability to connect and we know anxieties and several lockdowns have had an impact on people’s health and well-being. For charities, the pandemic and cancelled events have had a profound effect on their ability to generate funds for the work they do.
On the 1st January 2021 the staff of Colinwell Masonry & Retaining Wall products embarked on a 100 day step challenge organized by millionsteps.com, a social good startup. The aim was for each member of Colinwell staff to walk one million steps in one hundred days and to raise as much money as they possibly could for charity, and to come together as a team to do so.
Colinwell chose local Belfast charity PIPS to raise funds for. The organisation began when 14 young people sadly took their own lives in a short period of time. PIPS now delivers Suicide Prevention and Bereavement Support Services, Counselling and Therapies across Belfast and throughout Northern Ireland and since 2008 have trained thousands of ordinary people in how to save someone from suicide.
Million Steps Founder Ranjit Ghoshal said "When Eimear McQuillan and Colinwell reached out to us, we could see the drive and passion they had in wanting to bring staff together and to support a charity working in suicide prevention. It was a cause close to our hearts too. Participants each walk a total of one million steps in 100 days (an average of 10,000 a day) and along the way learn about habits, mindfulness, and strength and conditioning too. We see it as a 100-day celebration of movement and wellbeing."
Together the Colinwell staff walked 5367677 steps or 2683 miles which is more than the distance between Belfast to Halifax, Canada! AND raised a stunning £2000 between them PIPS!
Renne Quinn Executive Director said, ‘Thank you so much to the staff at Colinwell for taking on the one million steps challenge, all the money raised will enable us to continue to provide life saving support to those who need us in their darkest moments. Thank you’