Justin steps up for beyondblue

A Stawell man who walked from Horsham to Naracoorte to honour two late nephews has raised more than $10,200 for beyondblue.

Justin Chester decided to embark on the 150-kilometre endeavour after losing two nephews to suicide in the past decade.

Josh Finlay, from Charlton, died aged 21 in 2008, while Ben Jolley died in 2017, aged 22.

“Ben was born in Horsham and died while living in Naracoorte, so that’s why I chose those locations,” Mr Chester said. Although he had never trekked that far before, Mr Chester walks the six-kilometre round trip from home to work at Frewstal abattoir every day, ‘rain, hail or shine’.

He said he was trying to take positives from his family’s tragedy to help others.

“I want people to talk about it more, to look out for their mates and to use services like beyondblue and Lifeline before it’s too late,” he said.

“I’d like to thank everyone for their support and hopefully this walk has started conversations for people dealing with mental health issues in the community.”

• People can also visit www. beyondblue.org.au or www.lifelife.org.au for information and support about anxiety, depression and suicide. People in need of crisis support and suicide prevention services can call Lifeline’s 24-hour hotline on 13 11 14. If a life is in danger, people should call police on triple zero.