Richmond young gun Steve Morris backs Real Heroes Walk Away campaign Reece Homfray
From: The Advertiser
September 17, 2012 11:54AMRICHMOND defender Steven Morris says having a schoolmate bashed almost to death in late-night city violence has made him passionate about helping stop the problem.
The 23-year-old on the weekend spoke about his work with community group "Step Back Think" which aims to educate young people about the dangers of street violence.
It comes as News Limited launches its 'Real Heroes Walk Away' campaign.
As well as his role with Step Back Think, Morris delivers resilience and positive thinking programs in schools which he hopes to bring to SA next year.
Morris was moved to get involved after one of his St Bernard's schoolmates, David Mitchell, was almost beaten to death in a late-night incident in Melbourne in 2008.
Mitchell was in a coma for 12 days and while he has now recovered, he had to learn to do life's basic things like make his bed all over again.
"We go into schools and share a few experiences that it's just not worth throwing a punch and ending someone else's life,'' Morris said.
"Or having the guilt of putting them in a coma, going to jail, all those sorts of things.
"But the more they're faced with that information, the more likely if they are in that situation to think `this sounds very familiar, it's exactly what happened to this guy' maybe we should just get out of here.
"We're not telling you what to do, there's a million different situations, we're just saying step back and think about the consequences of your actions.''
Morris, who returned to Adelaide to watch his old side defeat Central District in the SANFL's qualifying final on Sunday, said the key was educating young people to be prepared if they're encountered by late-night violence.
"Knowing and reading the cues is one of the most important things of when you might find yourself in a bad situation,'' he said.
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/afl/more-news/richmond-young-gun-steve-morris-backs-real-heroes-walk-away-campaign/story-e6frf9jf-1226475711196
