LAST November Dartmoor farmer Mike Malseed suffered a mental health crisis, which sadly resulted in him taking his own life.

Mike was born in Witheridge, Mid Devon and spent most of his life at Frenchbeer Farm near Chagford. The WTF?! (Witheridge to Frenchbeer) idea grew from discussions between Mike’s good friends Sue Parrott and Boots Bright, who regularly joined him on riding holidays.

Led by Sue and Boots, Mike’s family and friends created the idea of WTF?! to raise funds in his memory to widen awareness of the warning signs of mental ill health and how best to offer support, something that is especially important in isolated farming areas.

They said: ‘We believe an ideal way to do this is to provide mental health first aid training for key members of rural communities.

‘Awareness of what to do in a health emergency undoubtedly saves lives by empowering people to take appropriate action. However, while many people have undertaken physical first aid training, mental health emergencies do not attract the same level of attention.’

Over the weekend of October 22-23, a small group of family and friends will be following Mike’s ‘life journey’ by walking, running, cycling and horse riding from Witheridge to Frenchbeer, culminating in a fundraising reception to be held at Chagford Recreational Trust Clubhouse.

The goal is to provide training for 20 people from rural organisations and communities across Dartmoor. The aim is that people who receive the training will then be able to maximise their new skills by sharing them with others and widening understanding of what mental health crises and potentially life-threatening deterioration in mental health conditions can look like.

This should ensure that many more people will have the basic skills to help identify those who may be at high risk and to guide them towards appropriate support that might save their lives.

Funds raised will go to the Farming Community Network (working through the Dartmoor Hill Farm Project) and to the Chagford Recreational Trust which trains local youth and sports group organisers. Monies will be allocated to specialist organisations to fund individual, tailored training and to complement programmes aiming to raise awareness of mental health issues in local communities.