We all have them.
Whether it’s getting on the beers, smoking like a chimney, eating garbage or losing half your pay by race nine at Flemington on Saturday.
Bad habits can continuously hold us back, but overcoming such daily demons often proves more challenging than it sounds.
But, a new fundraising campaign by MATES in Construction WA provides tradies with a built-in incentive to overcome their problematic predispositions.
Dry Spell for MATES is a health-boosting initiative that challenges construction workers to break a bad habit while raising money to help build positive mental health in the construction and mining sectors.
Participants raise funds for MATES, which will support vital suicide prevention programs at job sites across the state over either 50 or 100 days.
Starting in 2019, it has become a massive yearly fundraising event for MATES WA, with a target of $80,000 in 2024.
So far this year, more than 100 teams have raised more than $20,000, with some, such as Paragon Scaffolding, raising $4870 and Melchor Construction, raising $4460.
Evie Greenwood, a senior project engineer at Georgiou Group, has raised nearly $4,000 alone by quitting alcohol for 100 days.
She told MATES WA she was doing the challenge in honour of her brother, who passed away unexpectedly after struggling with substance abuse.
“It’s fair to say my life was turned upside down,” she said.
I’ve done a lot of work to get where I am now, and am proud of myself. However, the start of my journey wasn’t easy.”
“I tried several services that didn’t really help. MATES was my lighthouse. My general manager put me in touch with them, and I didn’t anticipate how amazing their assistance would be.”
“Looking back, I realise how truly overwhelmed I was, and I can’t ever thank MATES enough for the torch they gave me during my dark journey.”
The MATES in construction website says the initiative is a “flexible, choose-your-own challenge. Participants press reset on unwanted habits such as drinking alcohol, coffee, gambling, or whatever their food vice may be.”
“Taking part in Dry Spell is free, but if your family, friends or colleagues want to get behind your efforts with a donation, money raised helps MATES WA deliver its suicide prevention programs.”
While the full 100-day dry spell is already underway, participants can still sign up for the 50-day mid-strength fundraiser, which runs from August 8 to September 27.
