Montreal-Quebec Walk for Suicide Prevention

A Shawiniganais will walk from Montreal to Quebec to raise funds for suicide prevention, his big departure being scheduled for March 5.

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Éric Dubois is preparing to walk 240 km in eight days. A physical challenge, but above all a way for him to participate in suicide prevention. An idea he had when he was alone at home in full COVID-19 isolation.

“I am a positive and dynamic person and when I saw how much it could affect me to be alone, I thought of those who have problems being alone and being with themselves . I had a click, “he explained.

Walking from Montreal to Quebec, Éric Dubois has already done it for the victims of the tsunami in Indonesia in 2005. He then raised $5,000 with friends.

Today, it doubles the financial objective for the Quebec Association for the Prevention of Suicide.

“We were walking around with boilers on the side of the highway and we picked up $5,000. There, I tell myself that with social networks, it can give me a boost and help me raise more, ”he said.

The association welcomed the initiative, the $10,000 being welcome to continue the mission and train more responders.

The organization can count on some thirty citizen initiatives each year to raise funds. A plus financially, but which also allows us to count on new ambassadors who also share the message of prevention, which is crucial.

“There are three suicides a day in Quebec and for each suicide, there are a dozen bereaved,” said Mélissa Bérubé, mobilization advisor at the Quebec Association for Suicide Prevention.

Those who want to can share part of Éric Dubois’ journey.

The big departure from Montreal is scheduled for March 5 at Place Versailles and the arrival should take place on March 12 on the Plains of Abraham in Quebec City.

According to the most recent report from the National Institute of Public Health of Quebec:

• Nearly 1,128 people took their own lives in Quebec in 2019.
• Suicide is the 7th leading cause of death in the province.
• The suicide rate is three times higher among men than among women.