Growth for an important cause

TORQUAY couple Sean and Michael Towner are halfway through a 12-month campaign to raise funds, resources and awareness for people experiencing domestic abuse, and are buoyed by local businesses getting behind the cause.

Developed in November last year when Michael was on the cusp of a significant birthday, HairPeace is the pair’s website resource and charity initiative that’s helping start community conversations while generating $5,000 for service providers Communicare and Safe Steps.

“It pretty much started with the idea of a 30th birthday, marking it in a way that after the two years of lockdowns, instead of just celebrating after what everyone had been through in two years, just giving back in a way, helping people in whatever way we could,” he said.

Michael had recently read author Jess Hill’s seminal 2019 book See What You Made Me Do: Power, Control and Domestic Abuse – later made into a SBS documentary – and was inspired by John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s famous bed-in peace protests in the late 1960s that had a ‘Hair Peace’ wall poster in the background.

Normally sporting short hair, he’s growing it out for 12 months and will donate the proceeds from having it cut to the cause, but rather than a one-off campaign with a singular focus, the Towners have committed to 12 fundraisers over 12 months.

“Our first business that helped out was Ocean Grind that put up a HairPeace poster on their community wall. We didn’t want to make it too obvious what HairPeace was, it’s such a fine line of trying to get people to understand what domestic abuse is, for the people who need it most and might find themselves in such a situation, without giving them a brochure, they can’t take that home, trying to keep them safe.”

February’s campaign raised sanitary items for Share the Dignity, an Australian charity that distributes sanitary products to women and girls experiencing homelessness, fleeing domestic abuse, or doing it tough.

There’s also been a fun run, and in May Torquay’s Mavis Mavis cafe hosted a tip jar for the charity.

“We just picked that up and have to go tip it into the coin machine at the bank which is very exciting, it’s a very full jar,” Michael said.

“It’s not always just about what they can do for us financially, we’ve been talking to Hayley of Modest Folk, they’re a new business so can’t just be dolling out cash, but even if it’s a poster in the window or a post on social media.”

The pair believe that having businesses and the community join them on the campaign is a mark of success.

“It’s such a big issue, I’m sure we’ve been doing some things right, but there’s just always the ability to grow and be better, and to educate people about what abuse may be,” Michael said.

“I’ve spoken to friends and family – who I hope are in healthy relationships – but we would never have talked about domestic abuse before.

“But just because of this year, the fun runs and various initiatives that we’re doing, it’s become a casual conversation in our circle, which I think is the healthiest way for it to be.

“There’s no point not talking about it until the worst happens. I’m very grateful that this has come about due to passion for the cause rather than in memoriam of someone.

“I think we’re pretty lucky to find ourselves there, and it’s a shame that it’s not always going to be that way for a lot of people.”

For more information, head to hairpeace.com.au.