Last week, Mitchelstown Macra held a movie night at the mart for mental health and organisers of the event have said that it was a success with over 250 people gathering to watch Irish film Pilgrim Hill.

The event was hosted by Mitchelstown Macra at the Corrin Event Centre, Fermoy in association with mental health organisations, First Fortnight and SeeChange.

Movie goers at the mart came from all backgrounds, Macra, non-Macra, farming and non-farming where Mitchelstown Macra members were handing out green ribbons to promote See Change’s national Green Ribbon Campaign to get people talking openly about mental health problems for the month of May.

Fiona Hennessy, Mitchelstown Macra Chair, welcomed the 250-strong crowd to the event and introduced the concept of the event – to increase awareness of mental health and rural isolation in Irish communities, using the art form of media, to get the message across to all generations, and get people talking, one conversation at a time.

Sean Finan, Macra President, addressed the crowd and emphasised the importance of taking care of our mental health, especially in financially pressuring times for the agriculture sector and expressed his support for all macra events that are doing their bit in the communities to promote mental well-being.

Ellen Downey, brainchild of the event, is both a Mitchelstown Macra member and SeeChange ambassador.

Organisers said that she has worked tirelessly to promote mental well-being for those who are suffering in silence.

She spoke passionately about the film, how it struck her the first time she saw it and how everyone should watch it as it is real, raw and very relevant today.

Her key message to the audience was “You don’t have to be an expert to talk about mental health, anyone can start a conversation, anyone can ask those three little words ‘Are you ok’.”

Pilgrim Hill highlights a raw and real perspective of rural isolation. It shows the pressures the farmer faces every day in not alone running a farm but also the impacts of social isolation. Macra says that the distinct storyline tells the unspoken story of the lives of so many of the community.

The event closed with many pictures and Avondhu Macra na Feirme gifted €500 to First Fortnight.

Mitchelstown Macra said that its members were overwhelmed by the support for this event and thanked all of those who made the event possible.

It hopes that the event will encourage people to start talking, to be a friend to someone who is suffering, to look after your own mental well-being and to promote mental health in their own communities.