Ten years ago, my friend Burgess took his own life. Thanks to chronic underfunding and lack of resources, the care he needed to manage his depression was just not available on the NHS, and we lost a kind, thoughtful, and intelligent man who wanted to make a difference in the world. Mind was enormously helpful to me when Burgess was ill, and I needed advice and someone to talk to. Several friends of mine have benefitted directly from their care, and they do essential work.

When Burgess first died, I did a 10k bike ride on my nan's old shopper bike (dressed as princess Leia...!) and raised just over £800 for Mind - I would love to match that total this year. I'll be kayaking from Cambridge to Ely - that's 13 miles (20km), which is substantially further than I have ever paddled in a day before! The exact date of my epic paddle will depend somewhat on the conditions on the water nearer the time, but I plan to do it on the last weekend of July. 

Help me continue to make something positive from what happened to my friend. He was a thoughtful and kind man, who believed in the importance of leaving the world a better place than you found it.