Blue Tree to make Torquay debut

A TORQUAY tree is getting a “blue lease of life” in the latest addition to an Australia-wide campaign to start conversations about mental health.

Members of the Women’s Sharing Shed Torquay (WSST), located at the rear of Torquay Community House, are working on their entry to the Blue Tree Project, and will officially launch it in a forttnight’s time.

The first Blue Tree was painted in Western Australia to acknowledge the memory of Jayden Whyte after he took his own life in 2018.

The Blue Tree Project has grown enormously since then, with the initiative now a charity that helps change the way Australians talk about mental health and has extended to more than 1,000 trees across the landscape in Australia and internationally.

“This has been a project I’ve wanted to bring to life for a very long time,” WSST member Barb Rindfleisch, who is leading the Blue Tree Project at the shed, said.

“There’s now 1,044 trees around the country, spreading the word for mental health.

 

“I knew I wanted to bring it back here [from Western Australia] to Torquay.

“We’ve all been affected by mental health, I know that for a fact – it’s very close to my heart, for personal reasons.

“But we’re giving the tree a blue lease of life and bringing people together to create safer places and spaces to talk about mental health.

“Because we’re a community house, a lot of people come here, so we figured we’d put it out the front.”

Ashmore Arts donated the dead tree itself (the Blue Tree Project recommends using dead trees) and Bellbrae Nursery donated the pot.

The Torquay tree is being painted a specific shade of blue – Wattyl’s “Blue Tree”, renamed from “Billie Jean” after the success of the initiative – to match the hundreds of others created by the charity.

Ms Rindfleisch said she was looking forward to the tree’s launch and the associated community celebration, but WSST would not stop there.

“The main aim then is to go bigger for next year and do another one down on the foreshore.

 

“It’s a bigger tree, and every person who comes to Torquay will see that tree, and it’ll just create as much awareness as possible.”

WSST is also keen to find a larger shed to house its tools, equipment and projects.

The Blue Tree Project launch will be held at Torquay Community House, Price Street, Torquay, on October 20 at 2pm.

For more information on Women’s Sharing Shed Torquay, head to facebook.com/womenssharingshedtorquay

For more information on the Blue Tree Project, head to bluetreeproject.com.au

If you or someone you know needs mental health support, head to beyondblue.org.au or phone their 24/7 hotline on 1300 224 636. You can also head to lifeline.org.au or phone them on 13 11 14, and help for young people is available at kidshelpline.com.au or by phoning 1800 551 800.