We are very privileged to be working with the Holt family, who are organising a number of events and activities in memory of their loving and caring daughter, Chloe.
We have included a bit of information below about Chloe that her family have allowed us to share and you can read more in the article put together by the Oldham Chronicle last year here.
Chloe’s mother and father shared the grief they have experienced after Chloe was discovered in her university room. Janine and Stephen believe their daughter took her own life after coming across several diaries which recorded her feelings of unhappiness and anxiety. The family pointed to the stigma that surrounds depression and other mental health issues as one of the reasons why people do not speak out.
Despite her parents' pain they voiced one key resolution - to highlight the struggle that Chloe faced and to do all they can to prevent it happening to another family. They encouraged those who are struggling with mental health issues to be brave and speak with friends and family members, and to seek help before it is too late.
Matt Hoyle, Chloe’s Uncle, and Emily Harvey are putting together a series of Fitness Fundraisers from a fitness class on the 1st May, to a final Family Fun Day taking place on Saturday 5th May.
Starting off the week will be the free Blood, Sweat and Tears class on Tuesday 1st May, run by Matt. Taking place between 6pm and 7:30pm at Waterhead Academy Sports Centre. This is an open class that is suitable for everyone! Whether you are a fitness fanatic or prefer to take things a little bit slower, you can take on the class at your own pace! Matt and Emily would like people to wear lots of lovely bright colours, so get your best gym leggings out!
Last year over 130 people took part and the family raised £4000 for Mind. This year they are hoping to surpass this target and get people moving, not only to celebrate Chloe’s memory but also to raise awareness for those families and individuals who are going through a similar experience and need support.
Next up is a session run by Heavenly Bodies Gym based on Ripponden Road in Oldham! Taking place on the 3rd May at 6:30pm and run by an ex-Army Personal Training Instructor, this will be a free military style boot camp class!
And new for this year is the Family Fun Day taking place at Matt’s gym, Unit 75 at the Acorn Centre. This is where the family want to announce the final total fundraised and also invite friends, families and supporters to take part in a variety of activities. There will be lots of cakes (for after working so hard throughout the week!), fitness challenges and competitions, a bouncy castle, crafts and activities for kids, a stall of information from us here at TOG Mind, and much more.
Jenny Higson, CEO at TOG Mind had this to say –
“We are so grateful to Chloe’s family for choosing to support our work at TOG Mind. Hearing how Chloe’s family are choosing to celebrate and commemorate Chloe’s life through health and fitness, which we know is so closely linked to our mental wellbeing, is particularly inspiring and I cannot wait to see how the fitness events throughout the week go!”
You can find out more about Matt’s event at Waterhead Academy here, and donate to their JustGiving page here.
In Memory events such as this are so important for us at Tameside, Oldham and Glossop Mind to not only raise vital funds for our services and support individuals and families in a similar situation but to help us share what we can offer and sign post everyone out in the community to what help they can access.
If you’ve been inspired by this story and are interested in running your own event, or if you just want to ask us to have a chat with us about how we can help you with an event, contact fundraising [at] togmind.org.
For more information about TOG Mind and the services we offer you can visit our website www.togmind.org or you can call 0161 330 9223 where we will be happy to help.
