A bunch of mates from Sydney’s northern beaches will swim as far as they can and for as long as they can on March 16, to raise money for men’s mental health.

Andrew Ward, a sales manager with Konica Minolta, has seen too many men take their lives in his neighborhood, and wants to raise awareness about the plight so that he can have a positive impact on men’s health.

“I started thinking what could I do that would be a real point of difference in the mental health space due to my own experience and other people that have gone through this because it is a really dysfunctional system?” Ward asked.

 “Essentially we are a bunch of mates who have gotten together to raise funds to positively affect mental health on the northern beaches.”

The Head-Above-Water 24-hour swimming marathon for swimmers of all levels will be held in the Collaroy Rock Pool, with funds from the $30 entry going to Gotcha4Life, a mental health charity set up by Triple M breakfast radio host Gus Worland.

Gotcha4Life’s mission is to improve the mental health of all men and boys throughout Australia, with several initiatives across the northern beaches such as ‘Tomorrow Man’ and ‘Lifeline’

The Head-Above-Water swim-a-thon starts at 8am on Saturday and finishes at 8am the next day. Swimming lanes will be broken down by swimming speed and ability: people can choose to swim as few or as many laps as they like, so long as it falls within their allotted timeslot.

TAKE ACTION FOR MEN’S HEALTH

Register: Head Above Water Swim-a-thon

Find out more: About Gotcha4life and follow on Facebook

Read: Research confirms 5 uncomfortable facts about men's suicide (AMHF) 

Photo by Todd Quackenbush