10 Years of Amazing Impact In The Community

10. Amazing. Years

From a simple idea, to a thriving community, Activate Mental Health has achieved a lot in the last decade!

The origin of Activate Mental Health

In 2016, despite enjoying tennis, volunteering for TEDxPerth, and honing his photography skills, our Founder Rahul felt a sense of social disconnection. He yearned for something that could infuse energy and fun into his life. During a session with his then-new psychologist, he shared his desire to establish an activity-based mental health support group that prioritised engagement over traditional discussions. With her support, the Perth Active Depression Support Group (yes, a bit of a mouthful!) was launched on June 1, 2016.

The pitch that started it all

“Put your hand up if you ever felt so depressed that you didn't want to get out and catch up with your friends, let alone the outside world? Now keep that hand up if that feeling ever lasted a period of 2 weeks or more? This is the definition of depression, and if you haven't experienced it personally yourself, you probably know someone who has.”

On June 14th, Rahul nervously presented at the Victoria Park Community Soup event. Organised by the Vic Park Collective, this gathering featured three community members pitching their ideas to enhance Vic Park's awesomeness. The quote above represents the opening lines he shared with the audience to start my pitch.

After pledging to donate a quarter of the funds to another mental health charity and using the remaining amount to purchase board games, this event ignited the spark that fuelled our mission over the last 10 years.

Highlights over the last 10 years

There’s countless achievements over the last ten years, where we have hosted over 3,200 events. Some of the big achievements include:

1) Since August 2016, we have been hosting a monthly board games night at the Victoria Park Community Centre. Aside from a brief hiatus in 2018 and a short pause due to COVID in 2020, we have gathered together on the fourth Saturday of each month without fail.

2) Facilitating TED Circles since February 2020, our group ran this concept by TED, which was essentially a "book club for TED Talks". It has since transformed into a monthly TED Talk Discussions group that we proudly continue to host.

3) In September 2021, we established Perth’s first chapter of the Silent Book Club, a global initiative created a decade ago by two American women who sought a book club experience free from rigid formats.

4) We are proud to have received nominations for 14 awards and won four, including Rahul being named WA Volunteer of the Year by Volunteering WA, and our group being recognised as Community Heroes by the Town of Victoria Park, both in 2023.

We should not overlook the significance of small achievements. Our members have experienced reduced social isolation, gained access to safe and inclusive opportunities for social connections, and found leadership roles through volunteering for our cause.

The impact in statistics

The statistics of the last 10 years tell one truly amazing story:

• 8,354 members

• 150+ past and present volunteers

• 3,228 Events

• 18,500+ RSVPs

• A 4.7 out of 5 star rating after 4,400+ event ratings

• $371,943.07 Activator Volunteer Work Valuation (it's even higher when you factor in the behind the scenes administration, which hasn't been included in this figure)

Amazingly, we have only spent $67,378 to fund the group over the last 10 years or in other words, $20.87 per event.

Here is our financial performance over the last 10 years (our founder is a Chartered Accountant, He had to include this in!)

*= Years in which we operated as a registered charity,

The testimonials

Statistics are great, but they don’t tell the story of the impact. Here’s five of our favourite testimonials:

“Activate Mental Health provides me the opportunity to meet like-minded people, increase my social network and have some fun. I really enjoy to feel connected to the Perth community, in particular through the thought provoking TED circles”

“Unlike many community events, this group has a remarkable mix of people, men and women from diverse backgrounds, spanning different ages. It’s rare to find such gender balance in community spaces, and that variety brings fresh perspectives, making discussions dynamic and engaging.”

“I am very socially awkward, but I look forward to attending this monthly event. I appreciate your efforts in organising it so that I can get out of the house and meet people who are so kind, friendly, and easy to talk to. I always leave with a big smile 😀 . Thank you very much!”

“I quickly gained confidence and self esteem spending time with safe and supportive people who had the same struggles as I did. Now I regularly attend events, and have even hosted some events myself, finding great satisfaction and a sense of purpose knowing I can easily facilitate a space for people to connect - and connection is what we're all looking for, in the end!”

“It’s a supportive group who listen when someone wants to speak. There’s no degradation, just understanding. It’s accepting of others and unique.”

What’s in store for the next 10 years

What our dedicated volunteer team has accomplished over the past decade is truly extraordinary. We have created safe, welcoming, and inclusive environments in the community that are unmatched by any other organisation. The elegance of our model is its simplicity, combined with its profound impact. Although this model is designed for Perth, it can be easily adapted and implemented in cities worldwide.

Our group is moving toward the next phase, which involves hiring a small number of paid staff to enhance support for our broader volunteer network. By adding paid staff, we can:

• Improve systems to better assist current volunteers

• Recruit and train new volunteers

• Expand our services throughout the greater Perth metropolitan area

• Explore opportunities for remote volunteering in regional WA

• Implement more effective administrative and governance processes

As the world grapples with the epidemic of loneliness, we need to go back to connecting with and supporting each other, particularly on an in person. Activate Mental Health brings the element of play, something that we recognise

Thanks to everyone involved

First and foremost, a heartfelt thank you to the 150+ past and present volunteers. Your dedication is the foundation of our existence.

To all our members, we appreciate your support and regular attendance at our events.

A special thanks to our current sponsors: Consumers of Mental Health WA, Blooming Minds, ABS Institute of Management, Rotary Club of Northbridge, and Mark Your Ceremony, as well as our former sponsors Virtuosys, Au Skills, and LevelUp, whose generous contributions have significantly supported us over the past decade.

We also want to recognize the peak organisations that assist us in various capacities, including Volunteering WA, Alike WA, Outdoors WA, and Act-Belong-Commit.

Our 10th year report card

Here is our report card highlighting our accomplishments in our tenth year. A special thanks to Li, our remote volunteer, for elegantly presenting this report card.

Download the PDF here:

Here's how else you can support Activate Mental Health

🧑‍💻 Join our Meetup Group

🙋‍♀️ Register your interest to volunteer for us

🎗️ Donate to our cause

♻️ Recycle your cans through Containers for Change (Scheme ID: 11679851)