Help the Samaritans to do good
IT WAS a brilliant sunny day when I unwillingly climbed in my car and drove for two-anda-half hours to speak about this column at a fundraising event for the Samaritans of Plymouth, South Devon and Cornwall.
The title of the event was ‘How To Keep Going — a journey through life’s challenges’. When I’d completed the long journey home, I reflected that my own future challenge might be to say ‘ No’ to invitations and requests.
‘Why do I do it?’ I asked my husband but he was too busy hauling in logs to reply. But then I flipped the question and asked myself, ‘ Why would you not do something to help the Samaritans?’ Exactly.
Since 1953 this marvellous charity has been reaching out to people struggling with suicidal feelings or those who feel overwhelmed and unable to cope. The good they achieve can never be fully assessed.
One of the most positive developments of our modern interconnectedness is the proliferation of helplines and internet forums to deal with people’s problems. But the Samaritan movement was the first.
It offers support through more than 21,000 trained volunteers and is entirely dependent on voluntary support. Hence the hardworking people from the Plymouth branch organising the recent fundraising event.
About one in five calls to the Samaritans comes from someone with suicidal feelings, but there are other forms of acute emotional distress. After all, almost daily we read something about the increase in mental health problems in our society.
The charity also has a drop-in service for face-to-face discussion, trains prisoners as ‘listeners’ to provide support within prisons, conducts research into suicide and emotional health issues and offers a confidential email support service. (Call free any time 116 123 or email jo@ samaritans.org)
Yet they are desperate for donations for life-saving work. I wish Comic Relief would support a charity that can’t produce heart-wringing films.
Bel answers readers’ questions on emotional and relationship problems each week. Write to Bel Mooney, Daily Mail, 2 Derry Street, london W8 5TT, or email bel.mooney@dailymail.co.uk. Names are changed to protect identities. Bel reads all letters but regrets she cannot enter into personal correspondence.