You don't have to look far in Benalla to find someone whose life has been impacted by suicide.
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For a rural city of less than 10,000 people, mental health issues are far more prevalent than anyone would like.
Up until 2018, Benalla's Gayle Golonski was a typical grandmother who loved nothing more than to spend time with her grandchildren.
Sadly, since that time, Ms Golonski and her family have had to cope with the loss of not one but two of her grandchildren to suicide.
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Trying to find something positive in the most tragic of circumstances, in the past few years Ms Golonski has become an advocate for mental health support and support for those affected by suicide.
“To lose someone to suicide is heartbreaking,” Ms Golonski said.
“My grandson took his life in 2018, and 10 days before the anniversary of his passing his sister, who lived with me and my husband, took her life.
“To not even realise your grandchildren were having issues, is really hard.”
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Ms Golonski said seeing the statistics, which showed Benalla has the highest per capita rate of suicide in Victoria, was shocking.
“I knew it was bad even before my grandchildren took their lives,” she said.
“I'd heard of other people who had been through this.
“It is not a nice thing for the town to be known for.”
Ms Golonski said she welcomed the news that Benalla was being fast-tracked for a mental health service which would act as a ‘front-door’ for anyone in the community to access mental health support.
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“It is very important and I hope that they listen to local people in terms of how it operates,” she said.
“It should be for all, even pre-teens. They need programs that cover young and old, as mental health issues affects people in different ways.”
The Victorian Government recently confirmed that between the years 2011 and 2020 Benalla had the highest rate of suicide in the state.
In that time measures have been put in place to help address the issue, including the town being home to one of 12 place-based suicide prevention taskforces in recent years.
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The measures have included:
● The establishment of a Community Campaign Taskforce;
● Training 32 community members and 60 parents, and carers, in mental health first aid;
● Offering 29 members of local football clubs the opportunity to attend a suicide bereavement awareness workshop;
● Arranging for 109 local tradies to attend a talk from HALT (Hope Assistance Local Tradies);
● Seventy-eight local volunteers being given the opportunity to attend safeTalk training;
● The establishment of, and support for, Benalla's Live4Life student group;
● Offering mental health first aid training to students in Years 8 and 11; and
● Having a place-based suicide prevention officer located in Benalla.
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To build on that, earlier this month Benalla was included as one of six mental health priority sites being fast-tracked across Victoria, the aim being that local people will be able to access the treatment they need sooner, closer to home and family.
Ms Golonski said she believed having more places to access mental health support would assist local schools and families who were often not able to offer the support required.
“I don’t think it is fair on the schools that they are the ones that have to deal with such a difficult issue,” she said.
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“They should be able to make a call to someone who is trained in mental health support, when they believe there is a child who is having problems.
“Teachers already have so much to do. They have had teacher training, not necessarily mental health training, and it's not fair to put that all on them.”
The fast-tracked mental health support service in Benalla is due to be operating by 2022.
If you or someone you know is in crisis or needs support, call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue on 1300 224 636.
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