Samaritans in pole position at NW200 to speak to young riders and drivers

They will be available in the Eglinton Street area from 9pm on Friday 20 May through to the early hours of Sunday 22 May. The non-stop service they provide will compliment the charity’s regular 24/7 telephone helpline service over the weekend.

Samaritans Festival Coordinator, Anne Corcoran, believes having the chance to talk about your feelings is as important as ever, particularly as people are trying to cope with the present economic downturn.

She said: “As Samaritans we have the skills to listen and we’ll give time and space to those in emotional need.”

Samaritans actively promote the concept of talking about feelings and encourage people not to bottle their emotions up. Events such as the North West 200 attract l

arge crowds of fans and others aiming to have a good weekend.

However, often it can be lonely in a crowd and despite the festival atmosphere many people can experience feelings of loss and despair because of things that have happened in their lives either recently or in the past.

Anne Corcoran added: “At Samaritans we know that there are many young men in particular out there who do need to know that it’s good to talk to someone if you’re not feeling in a great place emotionally.

“Samaritans festival volunteers will provide that special face-to-face listening support and will do so in a confidential way.

“We encourage people who may be feeling a little down to use our service over the weekend to help release the pressure valve by talking about what may be troubling them. “