AB great humbled by fundraising support
Sir John Kirwan’s $1 million fundraising goal was reached as his nationwide tour rolled into Invercargill yesterday.
The 63-test former All Black left Auckland on June 30 and drove the length of the country speaking to schools, community groups and fundraisers to drum up support for his mental health programme, Mitey.
Mitey teaches mental health in schools just like reading, writing and maths, with a specialist teacher.
Kirwan was diagnosed with anxiety-induced depression, and said that as a young man his point of reference for mental health was the 1975 film One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.
‘‘I had an illness that kills and through the other end it’s pretty damn good,’’ Kirwan said.
Seventy schools currently used the Mitey programme and there were another 300 on the wait-list. The programme was in six Southland schools and had reached 12,000 kids nationally, he said.
Moments from the road trip that stood out included 11-yearold Luke coming up to him in Dunedin to donate $10 from his own pocket.
Kirwan felt kids today were more advanced than when he was at their age.
At a Christchurch school an 11-year-old stood up and asked what the programme’s position on homophobia was.
At another stop a woman told Kirwan her 21-year-old daughter took her own life the week before.
‘‘The road trip has been reaffirmation of how much this [programme] is needed,’’ Kirwan said.
The $1m target would pay for 11,000 kids to do the Mitey programme, he said.
Kirwan said the road trip had been tiring but he will get to see his Italy-based professional footballer son Niko in the next couple of weeks, for the first time in 21⁄2 years.
Asked for his thoughts on the All Blacks test against Ireland in Wellington on Saturday, Kirwan said he thought the team would need better tactical kicking, had to win the positional and possession stakes, play an error-free game and avoid cards.