Marni Fedekyo is now two donations into her pledge to donate her monthly $200 offsetting increase in town councillor wages to worthy causes.

Last Thursday, the 25 Project All In Coins she purchased were included in 68 presented to the entire membership of Cochrane Search and Rescue (CSAR).

Andy Potton, of CSAR, says these coins are invaluable and they appreciate being included as one of Fedeyko's monthly recipients.

"She's letting Seach and Rescue know that we are important which is hugely appreciated but as well she's developing that culture within the community, which truly has to be applauded because many people don't do that and don't care. Marni does."

Project All In was launched to take away the stigma surrounding mental health issues for first responders and beyond. It's designed to be a conversation starter.

Potton says it complements support CSAR members already provide for each other in times of need.

"We've been able to create that. It's very normal to disclose, so having those coins is very much the next step and really solidifies everything that we have been promoting for the last four years. Now there's a coin we can carry or take a picture of so if we get into a moment that we need  support for mental health we can text the picture to one of our peers on the team and we know immediately what that means."CSAR's membership has grown substantially after a highly successful recruitment campaign that attracted 21 new members, says Potton, 20 of which are members-in-training.

Volunteering for CSAR can expose people to highly traumatic situations and some members have suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder.

"We don't just do the searching; we do a lot of recoveries as well."

Last year they were involved in a search and had to recover the body of a young man and transport him in a respectful manner to the medical examiner.

"All of that has a huge toll on people. Particularly a few of the guys that came out to that call found it surreal."

"We get exposure to all of those challenges. And with us being volunteers, often people don't think about the impacts of that or what we actually do."

Local firefighter Chris Chyka has been helping move the needle on mental health advocacy and is helping spread the word of Project All In. He presented the coins to CSAR and the night previous presented them to members of the Cochrane Fire Service.

It's meant to aid everyone from rescuers to tow truck drivers and others who may not be in the limelight but provide crucial support.

"They are no different than we are and we need a way for them to reach out and ask help as well. That's the purpose of the coin. It's an ice breaker."

Fedeyko will continue to take the $200 extra provided in council wages monthly to compensate for taxation changes in compensation paid to elected officials.

"Listening to the community response, I realize that they weren't necessarily supportive of us offsetting the one-third wage that the federal government has taken away and so I offered to donate that propped up portion," she explains.

Project All In was her first donation and came during Mental Health Awareness Month.

"The awareness month reminded me of how important that whole topic is and how we need to keep talking. I can't think of anything better than a coin which hopefully will start conversations which will prevent unnecessary deaths or tragedies."

The Vaughn Sawchuk Foundation's "Robot Heart." (Courtesy of the Vaughn Sawchuck Foundation)

For February she donated the $200 to the Vaughn Sawchuk Foundation by purchasing four of their "Robot Hearts." Proceeds from the fundraiser support the foundation's Little Heart Heroes Camp.

Heart Heroes is a medically supervised camp specifically created for children born with heart disease. The camp was created to promote independence among campers, provide them a safe setting to socialize with their peers and allow them to discover they aren’t alone – other kids have faced similar obstacles.

Fedeyko will continue to donate to worthy causes each month and welcomes suggestions. She may not contribute to 12 unique charities, but definitely 12 unique initiatives.

"Some people have approached me with ideas and other causes I want to get behind because they are important to me. I'm willing to hear ideas from the community on what they would like me to consider supporting."