Five weeks ago I started this column with a simple idea: know your people. Know what normal looks like for your mates, so you notice when something is off. Since then we've looked at the different forms mental illness can take, and some of the tools that can help people through the fog. But noticing is only half of it, the question I keep hearing is what comes next. What do you actually say? What if you say the wrong thing and make it worse? That fear of getting it wrong stops plenty of good people from saying anything at all. We have no shortage of awareness days, campaigns and fundraisers, and they all have their place. What's harder to build is the confidence to walk over to a mate and start the conversation. That's where The Shaka Project comes in. The charity was started in 2019 by Sean Weir, a former gym owner from Ballarat and Bendigo who draws on his own experience with mental health. Since then it has delivered more than 500 suicide prevention events to schools, workplaces, sporting clubs and communities across Australia and overseas. Its presentations are honest, built on lived experience and delivered without the jargon. The name comes from the shaka, the hand sign with the thumb and little finger out. On the charity's clothing, the shaka works as a kind of permission slip. Wear it, and you're telling the people around you it's fine to check in and ask how you're really going. Someone spots it, asks "all good, bro?", and a conversation starts that might not have happened otherwise. I like that it's simple. It puts into practice something I've kept coming back to in this column: the conversation needs to start well before crisis point, and it's much easier to start when someone has already opened the door. Now The Shaka Project is coming to Boorowa. A free community night will be held at the Boorowa Ex-Services and Citizens Club, 55-59 Pudman Street, on Tuesday 27 October, with a sausage sizzle at 6pm and the presentation at 6:30pm. It's recommended for people aged 16 and over. The night aims to help people learn how and where to get help for a friend who may be at risk, and to build the confidence to have the right conversation. Boorowa Central School, St Joseph's Primary School, Boorowa Rugby Union Club, Boorowa Rugby League Club, the Ex-Services club and The Ned Ryan Motel are all backing it. So here's my ask this week. Put Tuesday 27 October in the diary, and don't come alone. Bring the mate you've been meaning to check in on. You don't need to have the right words yet. That's what the night is for. To donate to The Shaka Project and support the program that helps communities like ours, scan the QR code with your phone or go to the-shaka-project.grassrootz.com/fundraise-for-the-shaka-project/boorowa-stronger-together Scan to Donate to the Shake Project
