Wayne Schwass to visit Wagga

Wayne Schwass of North Melbourne celebrates after receiving his Premiership Medal at victory dias presentation after the 1996 AFL Grand Final between the North Melbourne Kangaroos and the Sydney Swans at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

AFL NSW/ACT is thrilled to support Wayne Schwass, Danny Frawley, Scott Cummins, Paul Licuria, Justin Koschitzke, Travis Auld and 22 others as part of the Puka Up Suicide Prevention Bike Ride from Thursday, March 15 to Friday, March 23. Puka Up is working in conjunction with the Black Dog Institute.

The ride starts in Sydney and will head through Wollongong; Goulburn; Canberra; Wagga Wagg Albury; Shepparton; Ballarat; Geelong and then finish in Melbourne. The 28 riders will cover 1,433kms to bring much needed attention to the issue of suicide, an issue that continues to impact families and communities across the country on a daily basis.

In 2016, 2,866 people tragically lost their lives to suicide. On average 7 people per day die by suicide in Australia and it is estimated a further 65,300 people attempt suicide every year.

For every suicide in Australia, it’s estimated there are another 30 attempts.

Riders will arrive and spend the night in Wagga Wagga on Monday, March 19.

The team from Puka Up will host a FREE Community Forum at The Rules Club from 7pm for a 7.30pm start.

Puka Up Founder & CEO, Wayne Schwass in partnership with The Black Dog Institute will deliver these forums where audiences will hear about Wayne’s personal 12-year journey with mental health and how he managed to overcome these conditions and why he passionately believes in the value of these conversations.

Check out more details on the event via the WAGGA COMMUNITY FOURM FACEBOOK EVENT page.