Trio raise £33k climbing peaks in memory of friends

Kurt Concannon, from Redditch, died in 2022

A group of men have raised more than £33,000 for a mental health charity following the death of two of their friends.

Jack Moran, Steven Aspindale and Bryn Williams climbed three mountains in less than 24 hours in memory of Kurt Concannon and Joe Aspindale, both fathers who took their own lives in the past two years.

The climbers, all from Redditch, channelled their grief into walking up and down Ben Nevis, Scafell Pike and Snowdon in a bid to raise awareness of mental health struggles and encourage others to speak about their challenges.

Proceeds will be donated to MIND, a charity that has supported people with mental health difficulties for more than 75 years.

“Kurt was brilliant, a hard worker, a good family man, a good laugh and always good for a party, a funny kid,” Mr Moran told BBC Hereford and Worcester while recalling his fondest memories of Mr Concannon.

He added: “[When I heard the news] I broke down with my mum, I sat in the garden and drank. It’s hard, I don’t deal with things well, I drink so that’s what I did."

The friends died 18 months apart.

Mr Aspindale’s cousin, Steven remembered: “He was always the brightest light in the room, he’s always having a laugh, he was always there for everyone else.

“Although we knew he was struggling over the past few years, he did talk to people, but it was still a massive shock to everyone.

“You sometimes think he’s going to pop in the room and jump up, it does hit home.”

The three peaks challenge earlier this month saw the group tackle the highest mountains in Scotland, England and Wales.

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Three-quarters of suicide deaths registered in 2022 were among men, a trend seen since the mid-1990s, figures released by the Office of National Statistics have shown.

During the trek, Mr Williams put 55 lbs (25kg) of weights on his back to represent the emotional weight that men often carry on their shoulders while getting through day-to-day life.

He carried the burden alone without telling his teammates.

“You keep things bottled up and you could be struggling - things do get heavy and weigh you down sometimes,” he said.

“[The amount raised] speaks volumes and shows how much this subject has affected the community and hopefully has brought the town closer together.”