When Shepparton resident Tyler Brodie lost his best friend to suicide, he didn’t realise it would launch him into what is now an eight-year journey advocating and fundraising for men’s mental health.
“When I lost my best mate, he was like my brother, that hit me pretty hard,” Mr Brodie said.
“I thought, what can I do? So, I decided to go to counselling, and the counsellor I saw was absolutely awesome.
“He was actually growing a mo for Movember, and he talked to me about the cause.”
That conversation sparked what was to be years of fundraising for Movember by Mr Brodie, and from that, ‘T-BRO’s Movember’ was born.
In 2015, the then 21-year-old Benalla local began his Movember cause by growing a moustache and raising small funds.
The following year, fundraising progressed to a sausage sizzle outside the Benalla Woolworths, and as time went on, T-BRO’s Movember kept getting bigger.
However, when COVID-19 hit in early 2020, community members were isolated in their homes, so Mr Brodie had to get creative with fundraising ideas.
Turns out, it was just the push he needed to get the ball rolling even further.
“As weird as it is, I think COVID was the best thing to happen to my Movember because it gave me the kickstart to say let’s do a raffle for the whole month,” he said.
“I also decided to do merch. I did stubby holders because I work at the bottle shop, and when you’re having a drink with your mates and they see T-BRO’s Movember on it, it’s a conversation starter.
“That goes for the shirts and hats too.”
From mates to family and even work colleagues, Mr Brodie has acquired a well-established team T-BRO, to share the message and fundraise for Movember.
“Anyone who buys a hat, shirt, stubby holder, or raffle ticket, you’re part of team T-BRO,” he said.
Through years of fundraising, Mr Brodie has created a name for himself as a Movember advocate, which, in turn, has sparked conversations with people about mental health and suicide.
“I’ll have people telling me stories, and I’d say, man, I’ve been through it – this is the reason why I’ve started,” he said.
“I would just say, I’m here to listen and I’m happy to help out.
“I want to be part of the solution and remove the stigma around mental health.
“There’s definitely a need (in raising awareness about men’s mental health), but there’s more need for men to come out and say hey, look, I’m struggling a bit.”
For Mr Brodie, growing the mo is more than an easy task – he said it runs in the family.
“It’s like a little joke in our family that I come from a good line of mo growers; it only takes me a week,” Mr Brodie said.
“I thank my genetics from my Pop ‘Sargie’ and Dad ‘Brodes’.
“Pop’s had a mo all his life, Dad has had a mo every year, and Conor, my younger brother, grows a mo as well in support of me.”
Hoping to beat last year’s fundraising efforts of $2650, Mr Brodie has already raised $455 at the time of writing, with more donations expected to roll in as of the start of November.
Throughout November, Mr Brodie will sell his merchandise and raffle tickets across several parts of the region, including Benalla and Shepparton.
Raffle ticket prizes up for grabs include the major prize of a Masport mower from Rose City Mowers, followed by a $200 voucher from Better Beer.
Remaining prizes include vouchers from Intersport Shepparton, BWS Shepparton East, Euro Garage Shepparton East and Burkes Bakery.
Tickets are available at Rose City Mowers and Terry White ChemMart in Benalla and Intersport Shepparton.
For further details on Mr Brodie’s raffle ticket and merchandise sales during November, message his Facebook and Instagram @TylerBrodie23.
To donate to Tyler Brodie’s Movember online, visit https://tinyurl.com/39fzfsun
• If you or anyone you know requires crisis support, contact Accessline on 1800 800 944, Lifeline Australia on 13 11 14, BeyondBlue on 1300 224 636 or Kids Helpline on 1800 551 800.