Son’s 153-mile walk ‘to make dad proud of me’
The son of a Sunderland AFC and Liverpool FC fan who sadly took his own life is paying tribute to his dad and raising money to support mental health by walking over 150 miles from the Stadium of Light to Anfield.
Cameron Dodd, 17, along with his two friends Chloe Saxton, 17, and Kieran Blore, 18, from Darlington, will be taking on the 153-mile walk from the Stadium of Light to Anfield in honour of Cameron’s dad, Steven Dodd, who sadly took his own life in 2019, aged just 42.
Dad-of-three Steven, from Darlington, was a huge fan of both Sunderland and Liverpool – and unable to decide between the two clubs.
Steven’s death left his family absolutely devastated and Cameron, who was just 14 at the time, couldn’t help but blame himself. The teenage trio are raising money for mental health charity MenHealth, which supported Cameron and his family after Steven’s death.
Cameron Dodd said: “My father took his own life twoand-a-half years ago.
"Since then I have not been the same and haven't really done anything other than blame myself and beat myself up about it.
"I've now decided I want to do something to make my dad proud of me.
“He supported two football teams during his life and is the reason I love football.
"I have chosen ManHealth to raise money for as they have supported my family in a difficult event back in 2019.
"I believe they do some amazing work so I want to give back to them for helping so many people.
"Any support that I can receive for this will be majorly appreciated.”
The group will set off on the five-day trek from the Stadium of Light on April 11.
They will be walking 26 miles to Escomb on day one, 29 miles to Grinton on day two, 32 miles to Malham on day three, 35 miles to Preston on day four and finish with 31 miles to Anfield on the final day.
To support Cameron, Chloe and Kieran on their walk and raise money for ManHealth, visit their fundraising page at https:// manhealth.enthuse.com/ pf/charitywalk
ManHealth was founded by Paul Bannister in 2015. The charity encourages men to talk about their struggles with mental health and seek support.