Adelaide’s lineup of Ambassadors are strong advocates for walking for mental health and are dedicated supporters of both Coastrek and Beyond Blue and the amazing work they do around Australia.
Julie McCrossin AM is a veteran radio and television broadcaster, journalist, comedian, political commentator and activist for women’s and LGBTQ rights.
She has a long history with Coastrek, dating back to the partnership with the Fred Hollows Foundation. Having recently relocated to Adelaide, Julie returns to Coastrek this year after an extensive battle with throat cancer, healthy and ready to hit the trail on the Fleurieu Peninsula.
In 2019, Julie was awarded a Member of the Order of Australia for significant service to the community, particularly through LGBTIQ advocacy roles and to the broadcast media.
Millie Walker has been involved in the health and fitness industry since 2003, running fitness franchises on beautiful beaches and developing corporate wellbeing programs for over 10 years. A five-time Coastrek Ambassador, Millie recognises the importance of an active healthy lifestyle for mental health, and each year she strives to involve more people moving in nature.
Starting as a trek training coach with Wild Women on top 12 years ago, she took 17 women trekking in the Andes, and helped establish the first Coastrek in Australia in 2009. Millie is a 4-time Australian Ironman finisher, has raced 6 x 100km ultra-marathons and in 2019 won the Kangaroo Island Triathlon. She has presented on The Morning Show, trained movie stars and taught yoga in Thailand, but her new passion is Stand-up-Paddleboarding the coastline between Adelaide and Victor Harbor.
Georgina Mollison has been a Coastrek Ambassador before and Coastrek ticks all of Georgie’s boxes of fun, friendship, fitness, and purpose. Georgie attributes the following to improvement in her mental health: nature, exercise, friends and honesty. You can read more about these tips for better mental health and Georgina's story by clicking through to “Four Great Ways to Manage Your Mental Health”
Peta O’Brien is a dedicated Coastrek Ambassador, Coastrekker and advocate for Beyond Blue. She will be fresh from completing the 60km event on the Sunshine Coast and ready to tackle the Fleurieu Peninsula terrain.
Originally from Adelaide, Peta experienced the loss of her sister in a tragic accident in 2020 and found training and participating in Coastrek was a great focus to help her through the grief of losing a beloved family member. In the process, she fell in love with trekking and proactively shared her tips and walking trails with our online communities. She returns to her home state walking in memory of her sister.
Peta also reached out to Beyond Blue when she needed support at the time and was so grateful for their help that she is committed to paying it forward. She explains:
“My aim is to raise as much awareness and funds to help support Beyond Blue and keep up with demand for its 24/7 Support Service. Beyond Blue helps so many people that have been in my shoes or have suffered some form of loss that leads to anxiety, grief, depression and suicidal thoughts. It can take you to a dark place and I’m grateful to Beyond Blue for helping me at my lowest point.”
