Darkness into Light is an annual walking event and fundraiser held, primarily, across the

island of Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the secon ...

. Participants meet before dawn (4:15am) on a particular Saturday in May and walk or run for 5 km to meet the sunrise. Founded in 2009 by psychologist Joan Freeman as a fundraiser in the

Phoenix Park The Phoenix Park ( ga, Páirc an Fhionnuisce) is a large urban park in Dublin, Ireland, lying west of the city centre, north of the River Liffey. Its perimeter wall encloses of recreational space. It includes large areas of grassland and tr ...

for

Pieta House Joan Freeman (; born 2 April 1958) is an Irish psychologist, mental health activist and an Independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist ...

suicide prevention and counselling, 400 attended the first event while the 2017 event was attended by an estimated 150,000 participants at more than 150 locations. Similar events occur in Australia and New Zealand, Asia and North America. The fundraising event has risen from 400 participants, at its inauguration in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...

2009, to over 200,000 throughout global 150 locations in 19 countries by 2018.

Pieta House

The Darkness into Light event is a fundraiser for

which provides counseling to anyone struggling with suicide or for anyone impacted by suicide. Joan Freeman, an Irish psychologist and politician, founded

in 2006.

aims to support those who are in suicidal distress, engage in self-harm, and are bereaved by suicide. They offer free services with the goal to ensure accessibility and help to anyone in need. Despite the Covid-19 pandemic,

was still able to provide services to communities across Ireland, servicing over 52,000 hours of counseling as well as answering over 70,000 crisis support calls.

Electric Ireland Electric Ireland () is an Irish utility company that supplies electricity and gas to business and residential customers in Ireland. It is the supply division of the Electricity Supply Board, the former monopoly electricity company in Ireland. Th ...

has sponsored Darkness into Light since 2013. They additionally help promote and raise awareness for the

Out of the Darkness Walk Fundraiser

Out of the Darkness Walk is a similar event to the Darkness into Light fundraiser held in the United States. Beginning in 2004, It is a community walk that takes place in towns across the country. The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention created this event as a way for anyone impacted by suicide (survivors, family members, friends, communities) to come together. Similar to the Darkness into Light Walk, this event is a walking fundraiser where participants walk-side-by-side in support of one another. The goal of this event is to bring more awareness to mental health, fight suicide and also remember loved ones lost to suicide.

References

External links

* Annual events in the Republic of Ireland Events in Dublin (city) Challenge walks Mental health in Ireland Running events 2009 establishments in Ireland Spring (season) events in the Republic of Ireland {{mental-health-stub