This weekend marked Week 53 of the Miles of Smiles initiative, completed at Aberdeen Parkrun.
The challenge coincided with Scotland’s return to the FIFA World Cup after 28 years, prompting reflection on themes of resilience, long-term commitment and collective progress.
Miles of Smiles is an 82-week fundraising and awareness initiative supporting SAMH and Clan Cancer Support, with a focus on encouraging open conversations around mental health and wellbeing across communities and workplaces.
The campaign highlights a broader issue that continues to affect individuals and organisations: the delay in seeking support for mental health concerns and the impact of stigma in preventing early conversation and intervention.
As part of the initiative, activities such as running, cold-water exposure and community engagement are used to promote discussion around wellbeing, resilience and support networks.
The initiative was founded by Marius Coste of Elior UK.
Campaign progress to date:
- 3,301 km completed
- £4,268+ raised for SAMH and Clan Cancer Support
- 255 cold-water showers completed
- 57 cold-water dips completed
- 53 weeks completed out of 82
The return of Scotland to a global sporting stage after 28 years has been widely noted as an example of long-term persistence and belief.
The campaign draws a parallel to mental health awareness, where continued focus on early conversation, support access and workplace wellbeing remains a priority across all sectors.
Miles of Smiles continues through to its 82-week completion, with ongoing fundraising and awareness activity planned throughout the remainder of the programme.