COLERAINE FC is pleased to announce a partnership with the Zachary Geddis Trust for the remainder of the season on a number of initiatives…

This partnership will include some fundraising events, mental health workshops and mental health training which will see the club more equipped to deal with the different challenges in our community.

The Zachary Geddis Trust is dedicated to being the ongoing legacy of Zachary Geddis, who suffered from mental health issues from the age of 14. Tragically, the world lost Zachary on 18th March 2017.

As a family of campaigners, the Zachary Geddis Trust spend their lives promoting the need for more accessible, inclusive, immediate and individualised mental health services across Northern Ireland.

The Zachary Geddis Trust was proudly launched (originally a small advocacy and campaigning organisation) on 16th October 2017 on what would have been Zachary’s 21st birthday.

Having opened their first grassroots mental health centre in 2022, the Zachary Geddis Trust has now grown into one of Northern Ireland’s most respected and well-known grassroots non-profit charities assisting over 200 individuals weekly from age 8 and above.

The partnership between Coleraine FC and the Zachary Geddis Trust has been led by the Social Club committee, specifically Willie Huey, who has done a fantastic job of pulling this together.

Speaking about the importance of the partnership and the need to raise awareness of mental health, Willie said: “We are delighted to have the Zachary Geddis Trust as our designated charity for the remainder of the current season.

“It is a very worthy cause and Yasmin has kindly set out a timetable of events over the next few months, which will be communicated on the club website and social media platforms.

“We want to include everyone connected in any way to Coleraine FC; youth set-up, Academy, senior team, women’s section, manager and backroom staff – and of course our loyal fans.”

Yasmin Geddis, CEO of the Zachary Geddis Trust, said: “The Zachary Geddis Trust is proud to announce that we are the first official charity partner of Coleraine Football Club.

“Zachary and I were both born and raised in Coleraine, and since 2017, our organisation has been dedicated to continuing his memory by serving the local community through free, professional mental health provision. This partnership is a special opportunity to collaborate with our hometown club and bring a unique offering to players, coaches, and families.

“At the Zachary Geddis Trust, our values are rooted in community, raising awareness, and delivering resilience-building programmes to those who need them most. Through this new partnership, we look forward to supporting even more people across our community.”

Dale Pryde-MacDonald, CEO at Coleraine FC, added: “The club is very proud to partner with the Zachary Geddis Trust. We are working with a fantastic charity who do brilliant work and have a meaningful impact on everybody they come in contact with.

“Specifically, I would like to thank Willie Huey and representatives from the Social Club committee for working very hard on this.

“Through this partnership there are a number of key outcomes for us as a club, from mental health workshops and training, to also raising a stronger awareness of the mental health service provision that the trust provides and how we can better support our local community and the people that need it most.”