HALIFAX, April 25, 2013 /CNW/ - Bell Aliant, in partnership with Bell,
today announced Clara's Big Ride for Bell Let's Talk, a national
bicycle tour by Clara Hughes in support of mental health. The tour
begins in March of 2014 and will span more than 100 days, 12,000
kilometres and every province and territory of Canada ending in Ottawa
on Canada Day, 2014. Bell Aliant will be working with local community
organizations to promote Clara's Big Ride and encourage more
conversations about mental health.
Bell Let's Talk national spokesperson and six-time Olympian Clara Hughes
will ride across the country, inviting people to join the mental health
discussion, while sharing her own story of a struggle with depression
during her athletic career.
"I'm incredibly excited about bringing even more Canadians into the Bell
Let's Talk conversation - the schools, community groups and hometown
champions that are really moving mental health forward," said Clara.
"I'm looking forward to meeting people across Canada, hearing about
their challenges and successes, sharing our stories and embracing new
ideas and opportunities in mental health. I can't think of a better way
to meet people, from the cities to the coasts to Canada's North, than
getting on my bike and taking to the roads of this beautiful country."
"This tremendous initiative gives us an opportunity to build on the
progress we have made in the fight against the stigma surrounding
mental illness, and accelerate that progress in the communities we
serve," said Karen Sheriff, Bell Aliant President and CEO. "Clara's Big
Ride will build on the 2013 success of Bell Let's Talk Day and rally
Canadians to take the conversation about mental health to the next
level."
Clara's Big Ride for Bell Let's Talk is supported by Canada's leading
mental health organizations. Bell Let's Talk is also proud to announce
BMO, Canadian Tire, Samsung and CTV as the first National Partners of
Clara's Big Ride for Bell Let's Talk.
The Ride will be a catalyst for new events, partnerships and fundraising
where every dollar stays in the community for local mental health
initiatives. The ride will reach more than 60 per cent of the
population, including all three Northern Territories. Extensive plans
are already underway to engage with local, regional and national
organizations to create hundreds of community events.
Making a difference includes bringing the next generation into the
conversation. Schools across the nation will have the opportunity to
talk directly with Clara about new ideas to grow the conversation about
mental health in their own communities. The Ride will also work with
communities to develop their own Bell Let's Talk events, an
unprecedented opportunity for local mental health groups to raise funds
and awareness for their programs.
Share in the ride at Bell.ca/ClarasBigRide
Every Canadian can participate in Clara's Big Ride for Bell Let's Talk
through community events and social media. For more information, please
visit Bell.ca/ClarasBigRide or follow the latest news on Facebook at Facebook.com/BellLetsTalk or on Twitter at @Bell_LetsTalk.
Clara's Big Ride builds on the growing success of Bell Let's Talk Day
when Clara led millions in talking about mental illness to end the
stigma resulting in a total of 96,266,266 calls, texts, tweets and
Facebook shares by Canadians. This translated into an additional
$4,813,313.30 in funding for mental health programs. Bell has now
committed a total of $62,043,289.30 to Canadian mental health.
The largest-ever corporate commitment to Canadian mental health, the
Bell Let's Talk initiative was launched in 2010 to drive action in
mental health based on 4 pillars: Anti-stigma, care and access,
research, and workplace best practices. To learn more about Bell Let's
Talk, please visit Bell.ca/LetsTalk.
About Bell Aliant
Bell Aliant (TSX: BA) is one of North America's largest regional
communications providers and the first company in Canada to cover an
entire city with fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) technology with its FibreOP services. Through its operating entities, it serves customers in six
Canadian provinces with innovative information, communication and
technology services including voice, data, Internet, video and
value-added business solutions. Bell Aliant's employees deliver the
highest quality customer service, choice and convenience.
SOURCE: BELL ALIANT INC.
![](http://rt.newswire.ca/rt.gif?NewsItemId=C8682&Transmission_Id=201304251230CANADANWCANADAPR_C8682&DateId=20130425)