June 5th, 2025‘Kindness is key to being free’: New crew at Live4Life Hepburn launch
Live4Life Hepburn introduced members of the 2025 crew with a launch at Daylesford College last month.
The event was planned and MCd by the year 9 and 10 members of the Live4Life Crew and attended by representatives from Hepburn Shire Council, Central Highlands Rural Health, neighbourhood centres, Community Bank Daylesford District, the Daylesford Foundation and Daylesford RSL.
Twenty crew members welcomed staff, Partnership Group members and more than 80 year 8 students and outlined key mental health messages, introduced their 2025 theme of “Kindness is key to being free” and their mascot Dave the Daylesford wombat.
Dave does not judge but offers a listening ear and kindness, inviting those to share what troubles them and offer support.
The award-winning Live4Life’s groundbreaking, peer-led, evidence-based, community impact model spans both suicide prevention and mental health/wellbeing education.
Live4Life is the only program of its kind designed specifically for rural and regional areas. College principal Stephen MacPhail said he was proud of the students who put their hands up to be Mental Health Ambassadors as part of the Live4Life Crew.
“Their willingness to step forward, show leadership, and support the wellbeing of their peers speaks volumes about the kind of young people they are becoming. They are a real credit to the school.”
Mr MacPhail also did a shout-out to last year’s crew who had been great role models. More than a hundred year 8 and year 9/10 students from the college will take part in the Live4Life program this year.
The theme was devised by the members of the 2025 crew to express the importance of kindness as an essential part of starting a conversation about mental health.
The annual prevalence of mental ill health in young people aged 16 – 24 years has increased by more than 50 per cent in the past 15 years and 75 per cent of people with mental ill health have their first episode during adolescence.
Suicide is the leading cause of death in young Australians and the suicide rate is more than 50 per cent higher in rural and regional communities.
Live4Life is an award-winning prevention model centered on young people themselves. It protects young lives before a crisis occurs. Young people are at the centre of the Live4Life program.
In 2024, across all Live4Life communities, over 8960 young people received evidence-based mental health education, improving their mental health literacy and ability to offer and seek help, while reducing stigma through the annual program of events and activities.
The total number of young people living in rural and regional communities who have received evidence-based mental health education since the Live4Life program began in 2010 is now 29,991.
In 2024, 297 young people joined the Live4Life Crew and were trained and mentored to support their peers as Mental Health Ambassadors.
In total, over 1470 young people have joined Live4Life Crew. Live4Life Hepburn is generously supported by Community Bank Daylesford District and the Daylesford Foundation.
Words & image: Contributed
