Bear took a year-long vow of silence, starting back in 2021. This psychologically intense challenge was followed by another 365 day challenge of wearing only fancy dress costumes. He didn’t stop there; a third year saw him asking strangers “how can I help?” throughout 2024. Lastly, Bear is now also nine moths into a final 365 day challenge of being barefoot for a year!

To wrap up these four years of challenges, Bear is walking from the Italian Alps to London, UK from 8th August to 8th October. This 1200km barefoot walk will follow an ancient pilgrimage route— the Via Francigena, all the way home…

Bear knows what it means to suffer in silence, not feeling like he fits in, struggling with his mental and physical health, and how easy it can be to feel like he has to “man up”. These four years of challenges have taken him to some very mentally tough and isolating circumstances. For this reason he felt like the best charity he could support through his barefoot walk is CALM:

“We’re Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM), and we’re a suicide prevention charity. We’ve got loads of tools and resources to help people find the support they need, including a life-saving helpline for people who can’t see a way forward, have lost someone to suicide, or are worried about their friends or loved ones.”

We greatly appreciate any and all your support!