Dry July campaign will support wellness centre

BRIGHTLY dressed Englishman Peter Willis has been named this year’s Grampians Health Dry July ambassador.

He has called Australia home since 1987, but on a road trip in 2017 his wife spotted a 8.9-hectare property in Ballarat and they decided it was the perfect place to live.

Mr Willis was diagnosed with stage four metastatic colon cancer two years later in 2019. He has since experienced multiple surgeries, hospital stays, two inducted comas and chemotherapy.

Mr Willis urged the community to complete regular bowel screening.

“I started getting the tests and I thought I was seven foot tall and bulletproof, so I chucked them in a drawer,” he said.

“Everyone I can, I push to take that test.

“It takes longer to drink a beer than it does to do the test. A beer isn’t going to save your life, but the test might.”

The Dry July campaign – where participants refrain from drinking alcohol for a month – is the biggest fundraiser of the year for the Grampians Health Cancer Centre and the Grampians Health Cancer Wellness Centre.

The Wellness Centre provides non-clinical support for people with cancer and their carers such as oncology massage, shiatsu, yoga and peer support groups.

It wasn’t until 2023 that Mr Willis discovered the wellness centre. He said it is now a home away from home.

“Rightly or wrongly, I shut myself away from everyone I knew in the past… I found people probably don’t know the questions to ask,” he said.

“When I came home from here and I mentioned other peoples’ names… I think in a way it helps [my family] to know that I am talking to other people.

“You can come down here and yes you can talk about what’s happening to you, but only for about five or 10 minutes and then we’re off talking about the holiday you’re booking in or something else.”

Mr Willis is now an active member in several groups.

The wellness centre receives no government funding and relies on community donations. To support the local Dry July initiative, visit dryjuly.com/BRICC .