Man to walk through Luton on 400km trek to Amsterdam to honour friends lost to suicide

Dan on his walk. Picture: Leonie Roberts Photography

A man will travel through Luton this weekend as part of a 400km walk from South Wales to Amsterdam to raise money for a men’s mental health charity.

Dan Simms, 24, is on day seven of an almost 100-mile trip. Suicide is the biggest killer of men under the age of 50, and of the 5,284 suicides in England in 2022 - 3,909 of those were men. And for that reason, Dan decided to set himself this huge challenge to honour his friends took their own lives.

He said: “I’ve been thinking a lot about my friends, Tom and Rory, who both sadly took their own lives, and who inspired me to take on this challenge. I feel that they are very much with me mentally while I’m walking.

“I’m thinking of them, thinking of their families, and thinking about all the people who have sent in messages to me, telling me heart-breaking stories about losing their wives, their husbands, sons and daughters to suicide.”

So far, over £4,600 has been donated to his fundraiser for suicide prevention charity Andy’s Man Club, and the families of his two friends, Tom and Rory. Andy’s Man Club offers free peer-to-peer support groups across the UK and online, with the aim of ending the stigma surrounding men’s mental health.

Dan explained: “I’m completely on my own on this walk. People are greeting me at evening stop overs, and I’m hugely grateful to the support and kindness that hotels and restaurants have been extending to me – it makes a huge difference and I can’t thank you enough. But on the actual walk itself, from location to location, I’m completely alone.”

He aims to raise £10,000 through this challenge. Dan added: “Too many people have thoughts trapped inside them, and some don’t make it past those thoughts. I want people to know that there’s a different way to battle through the tough times: speak to the right people and open up about the things that are trapped inside.”

If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, please contact Samaritan here or by calling 116 123.