Three bereaved fathers who set out to achieve something positive following the tragic suicides of their daughters have begun a third national charity walk.

The 3 Dad Walking, who have already raised more than a million pounds for the North West-based charity PAPYRUS Prevention of Young Suicide, have become national heroes for raising awareness and helping to save young lives.       

Andy Airey from Cumbria, Mike Palmer from Greater Manchester and Tim Owen from Norfolk completed their first challenge in 2021 by walking 300-miles.

A year later they doubled that distance by trekking 600-miles, walking between the parliaments of all four nations from Northern Ireland through Scotland, Wales and England.    

On Wednesday, April 17 they began trekking a further 500 miles, covering new ground by walking from Scotland through the eastern counties of England.

News and Star: The 3 Dads Walking set off on their third trekThe 3 Dads Walking set off on their third trek (Image: Papyrus)On route they will visit some of the newly opened, or soon to open, PAPYRUS offices and hubs in Stirling, Newcastle, Leeds and Norwich. 

Andy Airey, who lost his 29-year-old daughter Sophie to suicide in 2018, said: “This walk is about refocussing our fundraising efforts to help PAPYRUS achieve its goals and extend the lifesaving work the charity does.

News and Star: Sophie AireySophie Airey (Image: Supplied)“Along the way we will talk to loads of people, some of whom will be new to the charity, we will raise funds to help PAPYRUS open more offices, train more people and ultimately stop preventable suicides. Together we can save lives.”

During their two previous challenges the 3 Dads Walking were overwhelmed by public kindness and generosity.

Hollywood actors Daniel Craig and Nicole Kidman each donated £10,000 as did football legend Lou Macari who lost his son to suicide. 

Ged Flynn, chief executive of PAPYRUS, said: “The 3 Dads Walking have already captured the nation’s hearts, after all what could be more important than the wellbeing of our children and saving young lives?

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“Andy, Mike and Tim are ordinary dads who will be continuing their extraordinary mission to raise awareness and spread hope, helping to start vital conversations about suicide that too many families feel unable or unwilling to have.

“In their efforts to raise much-needed funds for our charity, the dads have already enabled us to grow and 2024 will see PAPYRUS further extend its work into the heart of many communities across the UK.”