Avalon Beach Bowling Club is proud to announce it is partnering with CCNB to host the inaugural Precious Breath Festival on its front green in October.

Precious Breath, a club community initiative, will be a free festival of live music from local bands, plus surf films, goodwill and information. The event aims to raise awareness of the issue of youth mental health and suicide, plus raise much-needed funds for organisations working on Sydney’s Northern Beaches.

“It will be presented as a day of enjoyment and community, with the vital message of awareness and support of mental health underlying the enjoyment,” Willesee said. “A silent auction and raffles will help the mental health and suicide prevention groups involved, and all donations are very welcome.”

Willesee said the need for the event arose after club members became increasingly concerned about local suicide attempts and deaths, and stories of mental stress, in their community and felt they needed to help in some way.

“It got to the point that every time we heard another helicopter hovering over the beaches, my wife and I instinctively feared the worst,” he said. “We are a relatively small community and too often stories of another local incident surfaced - so the members wanted to work together to offer support to those under pressure.”

Willesee said Avalon Bowlo sought professional advice as to the best way to contribute and were advised to ‘talk about the issues openly, let people everywhere know they are not alone, and show where there is support’. “From that information, the concept of a ‘precious breath’ awareness day evolved,” he said.

The Precious Breath Festival will be held on the club’s front green on Saturday 12 October from 2pm – 7.30pm. The green space dedicated to the festival will be strictly no alcohol, drugs or smoking.

The CEO of CCNB, Dr Gary Jacobson, said mental health problems do not discriminate and the impact of not getting support at the right time can be devastating.

“What matters most to people with mental illness is a supportive network of family, friends and neighbours in a community that isn’t afraid to talk about mental health and its impacts,” Dr Jacobson said.

“Community should be nurtured, celebrated and supported. That’s the key reason CCNB is proudly supporting this grassroots event,” he said.

For further information, please contact:
Kirk Willcox M: 0407 063 829
Marika Kontellis CCNB M: 0409 076 708

The participating groups include CCNB, Lifeline Northern Beaches, One Eighty, Walk ‘n’ Talk, Man Anchor, One Wave, Junior AA, and Waves of Wellness.