TELL hits slopes to raise funds for mental health services

TELL will organize the first TELL Mountain Challenge in Shiga Kogen, Nagano, on Feb 17-19. The event will support TELL’s provision of mental health support and counseling services to the international community in Japan.

The TELL Mountain Challenge comprises a team and individual challenge in which competitors will ski or snowboard down the greatest vertical distance in a single day, using the Ski Tracks smartphone application to record their results.

Prizes will be awarded to individual men and women, and in a number of team categories, as well as for the best-dressed individuals and teams, and in several other categories. Competitors will also have a chance to win prizes in a charity raffle.

Entry fees for the event, which is being co-organized with Tokyo Snow Club, will support TELL’s Lifeline crisis hotline and outreach services, and competitors will also have the opportunity to raise funds in support of community mental health services through the CrowdRise online sponsorship platform.

“There are two components to good health: physical and mental,” said Dr. Anne Bille, Chairwoman of the TELL Board. “And yet, while we easily notice when we’ve gained a bit of weight, stress and worry and depression are less perceptible, and often invisible to our friends, family and colleagues. The TELL Mountain Challenge offers participants an opportunity to improve their physical well-being through exercise, while at the same time helping to fund mental health support and counseling services that benefit the entire community.”

Participants can register at www.tellmountainchallenge.com/. The event cost of 33,900 yen includes return bus travel from Shinjuku Station, two nights hotel accommodation, three meals, one day lift pass, free ski or snowboard lesson with English-speaking instructors and entry to the TELL Mountain Challenge afterparty. The event cost also includes a 5,000 yen donation to TELL.

TELL, an accredited not-for-profit organization (NPO) with a 40+ year history to the international and Japanese community in Japan, operates a telephone Lifeline, as well as confidential mental health support and counseling services. TELL Lifeline receives approximately 6,000 calls a year from all over Japan, of which roughly 60% come from Japanese citizens and 40% from Japan-resident foreigners. For more information on TELL and its services, please visit http://www.telljp.com/.