A first in Canada
Rotary Club of Lantzville – Mental Fitness Trail
The Rotary Club of Lantzville have recently completed what they believe to be a first in Canada (and possibly North America) – a Mental Fitness Trail. Our brains are muscles that require exercise, the same as our bodies, to help maintain and strengthen them.
We were inspired to do something that would increase access to mental health resources in our community when we learned of the story of Adam Ojala. Adam dealt with mental health challenges throughout his life, having been diagnosed with Schizophrenia at a young age. He found it difficult to live in a structured living environment, and so lived in the bush in our local community. Everyone who met and knew him, speaks of what a kind and caring individual he was – he kept the area he lived in spotless, cleaning up after not only himself but others as well. Sadly, in late 2020 Adam could no longer deal with all the challenges he was facing and died by suicide. In the development of the trail, we have worked closely with Adam’s family to get their input and approval.
Our club worked closely with Vancouver Island Crisis Society and the Vancouver Island branch of the Canadian Mental Health Association to develop a series of 10 signs. These signs are located along the side of a popular 2 km long paved trail in Lantzville. Each one offers suggested “exercises” that people walking the trail can do. At each end we invite trail walkers to assess their current feelings, allowing them to compare how they feel at the start and end of the trail. Each sign also has a QR code for the VI Crisis Society that will help link people to local mental health support resources.
At the midpoint of the trail, one of the signs explains the history of the trail and tells some of Adam’s story. As part of the project, we were also able to fund a memorial bench to Adam, with the following words provided by his family:
STAY: Tomorrow needs YOU! From the family of Adam Craig Ojala 1971 – 2020
Although the Rotary Club of Lantzville took the lead on the project, we had a number of willing partners who helped bring it to fruition (The District of Lantzville, VI Crisis Society, CMHA (VI chapter)) along with a District Grant from District 5020.
