\u201cI am running to raise awareness and money for mental health,\u201d Dininio told Canadian Running, \u201cto normalize the conversation about it, not hide it from anyone.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dininio shared daily updates on his Instagram and Facebook pages,\u00a0MylesAcrossCanada<\/a>, with links to his fundraising page<\/a> available on both platforms. He set a goal of raising $50,000 and reached it on the final day, finishing the 147-day trek with $50,626 raised.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve chosen to dedicate this run to CAMH, Canada\u2019s leading mental health hospital,\u201d Dininio said on his fundraising page. \u201cOne in five Canadians experiences mental illness in any given year, and more than 4,000 Canadians die by suicide annually, nearly eleven people every day.\u201d<\/p>\n Dininio has also been open about his own struggles with mental health and the work he does to manage them. For him, the run was about more than covering thousands of kilometres; it was about the unseen effort required to keep moving forward despite the challenges.<\/p>\n \u201cThe journey has been a real rollercoaster ride with lots of highs and even more lows,\u201d Dininio said. \u201cRunning for mental health while testing my own to the max. There were challenges every single day.\u201d<\/p>\n Mixed emotions<\/p>\n This wasn\u2019t Dininio\u2019s first cross-country journey. In 2004, at 18, he cycled from Mount Albert, Ont., to Nelson, B.C. This time, he made the journey on foot, pushing himself through five months of changing weather, physical pain and mental challenges. Sporting a Bubba Gump Shrimp hat along the way, the Forrest Gump cross-country inspiration helped him along the way.<\/p>\n As he approached the finish, Dininio described being in considerable pain, but also surprised by how difficult it would be to say goodbye to the experience.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m 146 days in right now, and I can run, but I can barely walk,\u201d Dininio said. \u201cI spent so many hours alone on the hard shoulder trying to keep my mind at ease, and I\u2019m not sure how it\u2019s going to feel to complete the run. I\u2019m tired and want to go home, and I\u2019ve had that feeling for a while now, but on the other hand, I don\u2019t want it to end.\u201d<\/p>\n When Dininio started the Journey in St. John\u2019s, he filled a jar with seawater. When he entered the ocean-side Stanley Park in Vancouver and came face to face with the Pacific Ocean 147 days after leaving the Atlantic, he filled a second jar. The two jars bookended the journey, but he says the conversation around mental health that inspired the run continues.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen it all started, all I was looking for was my 2 jars of water, and I found those and so much more,\u201d Dininio said on Instagram<\/a>. \u201cOne thing I found is my voice, and I\u2019d like to use it to thank y\u2019all again. The support, the love, people staying with me and letting me know they are there. That\u2019s the stuff that kept me going, and this isn\u2019t the end\u2014a closing chapter, sure.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n![\"Myles](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/7E99A852-A1CE-4150-A1E5-CCB3F9718DCB-e1787500942669-1024x769.jpg\")
Myles Dininio posing with Terry Fox statue during run across Canada for CAMH. Photo courtesy of Myles Dininio<\/p>\n![\"Myles](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/myles-cross-canada-4-e1787501034658-1024x855.jpg\")
Myles Dininio\u2019s Bubba Gump Shrimp hat during run across Canada for CAMH. Photo courtesy of Myles Dininio<\/p>\n![\"Myles](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/myles-across-canada-3-e1787501128712-1024x937.jpg\")
Myles Dininio during run across Canada for CAMH. Photo courtesy of Myles Dininio<\/p>\n