Carol Packer is setting out to bike 100 kilometres per day to raise mental health awareness and funds to fight addiction.
She’s going until she hits 1300 kilometres, the distance between her and her brother Lee Earnshaw when he died of a drug overdose last year in Winnipeg.
“It’s so important that we reduce the barriers that people face, and the stigma,” said Packer.
Packer’s goal is to raise $7,500 for St. Boniface Street Links, a Winnipeg organization working to reduce overdose deaths. It’s a team Ernshaw knew well while he lived in a tent along the Seine River.
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St. Boniface Street Links Founder Marion Willis says Ernshaw tried to access help many times before his death, but faced constant barriers getting into detox centres and facilities.
“It was just a vicious circle of multiple attempts for Lee to get help,” said Willis. “Each time he would essentially just have to return to his fishing tent on the banks at the scene.”
Packer says the funds raised from her cycling journey across Alberta will go toward replacing bikes from St. Boniface Street Links, which were stolen this year.
She says her message is clear. “You have compassion for those who are suffering and who are unhoused or suffering with mental health and addictions.”
The inquest into her brother’s death is scheduled to start on the fall 2023.
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