Players from a local cricket club have taken the covers off for a good cause.
Members of Glasshouse Districts Cricket Club cast their nerves aside to strip down and feature in a unique calendar to support mate-ship movement Grab Life by the Balls.
President and long-term player Jeremy Schultz said it was a bold but important initiative, to raise funds and to get men talking about mental health.
“We’ve got about 80 to 100 men playing cricket at our club and you don’t really know what’s happening in their lives,” he said.
“There’s still a bit of a stigma around men’s health and that you’re not tough if you speak about it, but we’re trying to play a small role and let men know it is okay to talk about things, and support Grab Life by the Balls.”
Jeremy said most of the players were initially unwilling to take part in the photo shoots.
“When we started toying with the idea, I thought I would never get the guys to do it because I didn’t want to do it,” he said.
“I made 11 phone calls to ask them if they’d do it and every one of them said ‘no, I don’t think I could do that’.
“But the more I talked to them, the more they said ‘yeah, I think I could do that\.
“Once we thought about it, we realised it wouldn’t be too bad … in the end it was excellent.”
Jeremy, ‘Mr February’, said they were “completely out of their comfort zone”.
“There were a couple of guys who loved it … but it was a weird experience to turn up to the shoot and know you’re going to be taking your kit off and getting photographed.
“But it was done very well and was very tasteful.
“We were all a bit anxious about how it was going to be received but we’ve raised $4300 for charity, which has exceeded all our expectations.”
The launch of the calendar was attended by about 150 people, including special guests to talk about men’s health.
Ben Stokes, aka ‘Mr September’, said ‘it’s not weak to speak”.
“If we had the courage to get nude in front of the camera, it’s not too hard to reach out to a mate and have a chat.”
All proceeds support Grab Life by the Balls, in helping men establish stronger social connections and improve their quality of life.
Movement founder Sam Parker said, “Social isolation is a key contributor to poor mental health.”
“Our hope is that we can encourage men to prioritise their mental health by putting themselves out there and sharing their struggles with their mates.”
Do you have an opinion to share? Submit a Letter to the Editor with your name and suburb at Sunshine Coast News via: news@sunshinecoastnews.com.au
The charity’s ‘proactive men’s mental health movement’ is behind gatherings across Queensland’s coast, which provide men with a relaxed, accepting environment in which to befriend, inspire and empower each other.
To support Grab Life by the Balls and feature 12 of Glasshouse Districts Cricket Club’s finest on your wall, calendars are available to purchase via Glasshouse Cricket Club.
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