The Maitland Gladiators Motorcycle Club members are making their way through western NSW on route to Perth in a bid to raise money for Young Diggers.
They hope the 4000 kilometre journey will entice
the community to dig deep and think about the challenges young men
and women face after they come home from war.
Mr Bennett served in the Royal Australian Navy for
almost 25 years and said the cause was close to his heart.
He said conflicts in Afghanistan and other parts of the world were having a huge mental impact on Australian soldiers and support services needed more money to help them recover.
“There are a lot of guys who have come back and
they have Post Traumatic Stress Disorder …It’s an awful thing for
them. I know there’s been a few suicides because they haven’t been
able to cope,” he said.
“I’ve been thinking that the best way to help is to try to raise awareness about what’s happening to them and get people to donate.
“We’ll be doing 500 to 600 kilometres a day until
we get to Perth and we’ll be thinking about our diggers during the
trip.”
Mr Bennett has set up a Facebook page called
Journey For Young Diggers so supporters can track the journey.
He posted on Thursday afternoon that they had arrived in Broken Hill, after 600 kilometres through the countryside.
On Friday they will travel to Port Augusta.
They hope to arrive in Perth late next week.
“Young Diggers do a lot, they offer counselling
and they are helping the guys with assistance dogs which virtually
give them dog therapy,” he said.
Donations can be made directly to Young Diggers Ltd – BSB: 064164, account number 10684790.
Mention Journey For Young Diggers (JFYD) in the online banking transaction description.
This will allow Mr Bennett and Mr Atkins to find out how much money they have raised.