A mental health advocate from Powys will be jetting off to Africa later this month in a bid to raise money for a charity that specifically helps those working in rural areas.

Simon ‘Jungle’ John will be climbing Mount Kilimanjaro with the aim of raising money for the DPJ Foundation – a charity set up to help people working in the agricultural industry in Wales.

Simon, from Builth Wells, has not been shy in talking about his own mental health struggles – saying he will be on medication for the rest of his life.

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But he has garnered a reputation for highlighting his own struggles, and those of others, as well as helping raise money for local groups and charities.

In February 2022 he raised more than £6,000 for Builth Wells Community Support (BWCS) by walking to the top of Garth Hill overlooking Builth every day for a year.

Now, he’s climbing Kilimanjaro in Tanzania – just once, but a few thousand metres higher. His motivation is the DPJ Foundation, as well as being rooted close to home, after revealing his grandfather died in an agricultural accident more than four decades ago.

“Back in the 1970s my grandfather, Christopher John, lived in a place called Cefn, near Penderyn (between Brecon and Merthyr), right next to the whisky distillery, before it was one,” said Simon, 56.

“He was killed by a tractor. My dad, Elwyn, was a vicar and had and offered that (mental health) support, but people didn’t have the support of a group like the DPJ Foundation back then, it just wasn’t there.

“My pathway could have been so different. His (grandfather’s) death is the big motivation for me.

“Mental health is talked about more today but it still needs to be talked about even more, and the DPJ Foundation do wonders as a small charity.”

Simon, pictured with his grandfather, Christopher John.Simon, pictured with his grandfather, Christopher John. (Image: Simon John.)

Simon's grandfather Christopher John died in a tractor accident in the 1970s.Simon's grandfather Christopher John died in a tractor accident in the 1970s. (Image: Simon John.)

Simon is a familiar figure in and around Builth, blogging regularly under his own Jungle Productions, championing local events and people.

After his Garth Hill heroics, Simon was keen to find another challenge, and Kilimanjaro has been in the pipeline for around 18 months.

He flies out on September 11 and is hoping to summit its 5,895 metres, along with a group of about 20 people, on September 20.

“Spreading awareness of mental health is what I’ve always been doing, but raising money for the DPJ Foundation is the target with this challenge,” added Simon.

“They do a lot for the farming community. It all stems from my own experiences and how what I do is all aimed at informing people how I cope and how exercise has been so important to me.

“The blogs have always been a way for me to express myself and let people know who are battling these sorts of things how I cope with the struggles and how they can too.”

The DPJ Foundation was set up in July 2016 following the death of Pembrokeshire farmer Daniel Picton-Jones, who took his own life.

Daniel’s mental health problems went undiagnosed and unseen by many. He was an agricultural contractor, working in a sector with one of the highest suicide rates.

The charity was set up by his widow Emma, who wanted to support the mental health of those in the farming sector, providing them with the help Daniel didn’t know how to get.

This weekend, ahead of the trek, Simon is organising a walk and evening of entertainment.

On Saturday, September 7, he is organising a 10-mile walk in the local area. Anyone is welcome to join him from 8am at the Fountain.

Then, at 7pm, it’s back to the Fountain for an evening of live music, featuring Strange Size Objects, Racing Snakes, Tom Offa and DJ Funky Rooster.

Simon says he is very grateful to friends who have accompanied him on endless training walks, including Andrew Parry, Steven Owen, Gwyn Davies and Richard Lawrence.