A youth worker in Craigieburn, Australia has created a program called the White Owl Ambassadors Program to help empower young people and reduce the stigma around mental illness. The program aims to improve youth leadership skills and teach them how to raise awareness of mental health issues through workshops on topics like social media, public speaking, and opening dialogue about mental health. The youth worker developed the program based on his own experiences dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, and anxiety after coming out as gay. He is now seeking funding through two organizations to further develop and expand the program.

1. V1 - HOVE01Z01MA HUME LEADER, Tuesday, April 7, 2015 03
A CRAIGIEBURN youth
worker has an idea to
empower young people and
reduce the stigma surround-
ing mental illnesses.
Ben Falcone-Mayo has
worked with young people
for almost six years by help-
ing them reach their poten-
tial and overcome life’s
hurdles.
It’s on the back of a series
of challenges the 29-year-old
has faced in his own life, in-
cluding post-traumatic
stress disorder, depression
and anxiety from dealing
with the pressures of coming
out as gay.
But his experiences have
helped shape the White Owl
Ambassadors Program, an
initiative designed to boost
leadership qualities in
young people and give them
the tools to raise awareness
of mental health issues.
The program will include
workshops on ways to open
dialogue about mental
health with a focus on social
media, leadership and pub-
lic speaking.
Amid issues such as sui-
cide and recent reports of
Craigieburn teen-turned-
terrorist Jake Bilardi, Mr
Falcone-Mayo said the time
was right to advocate for
mental health awareness.
He is now seeking support
through the Foundation for
Young Australians’ Innova-
tion Nation program, where
$10,000 is up for grabs, as
well as a chance to secure a
spot in the Young Social Pio-
neers program, a tool to fur-
ther boost concepts of social
change.
“We’ve had lots of things
to really make you think
about what makes a com-
munity, (and) what makes
us strong,” Mr Falcone-
Mayo said.
For more information or
to support the White Owl
program, visit innovation
nation.fya.org.au/ideas/
white-owl-ambassadors-
program
CRAIGIEBURN
Focus on mental health
WHITE OWL PROGRAM TO RAISE AWARENESS
White Owl ambassadors Ben Falcone-Mayo, Shelby Robson, Diane Geytenbeek and Anthony Saratsiotis. Picture: MARK WILSON
Natalie Savino
NEWS WHAT'S ON CLASSIFIEDS SPORT
1-11 14 16-20 21-22
NEWS WHAT'S ON CLASSIFIEDS SPORT
1-11 14 16-19 19-22
CRAIGIEBURN traders are
continuing their fight
against plans to send their
post office elsewhere.
Last month, Craigieburn
Plaza traders told Hume
Leader the relocation of Aus-
tralia Post to Craigieburn
Central would affect busi-
ness and hinder elderly
residents.
Craigieburn Cake Kitchen
owner Haydn Gregson has
led the fight to retain the ser-
vice, circulating a petition
with more than 1000
signatures.
The petition was almost
called off when Mr Gregson
was told a postal “agency”
would remain in operation
at the plaza.
But he was later informed
it would only offer basics
such as stamps and
envelopes.
“This is the area that es-
tablished Craigieburn,” Mr
Gregson said.
“The community’s been
cut off at the knees without
even a conversation.”
The petition calls on Aus-
tralia Post to reconsider the
move or establish a fran-
chise in its place.
McEwen federal Labor
MP Rob Mitchell said he had
been in discussions with the
organisation to work out
how to get the best outcome
for residents, including in-
stalling more post boxes.
He said the centre of the
town was experiencing a
shift to the west and, while a
post point was not an ideal
outcome for the plaza, it
would at least provide the
basics.
“If they’re going to shift
the post office, what can we
get to actually limit the im-
pact, because there’s going
to be an impact — that’s a
fact,” he said,
An Australia Post spokes-
woman said they were in-
vestigating options to stock
products such as stamps, en-
velopes, parcel packaging
and express post items at the
plaza, but bill payment and
banking services will only
be available at the High-
lands and Craigieburn Cen-
tral outlets.
She said the red and yel-
low post boxes that existed
at the plaza would remain.
The petition is available at
shops within the plaza.
CRAIGIEBURN
Traderskeepupfighttoretainplazapostoffice
Stay sun safe
More than 100 people in
Hume have been
diagnosed with melanoma
over a three-year period,
prompting SunSmart to warn
people to be vigilant about
sun protection. According to
the Victorian Cancer
Registry, there are on
average 39 new diagnoses of
melanoma in Hume each
year, including 117 from
2010-12. To book a session
with a skin scanner, which
reveals the hidden effects of
UV exposure, visit
sunsmart.com.au Sessions
are $500 and can be booked
until April 30.
Tweet support
Hume Council has
launched two Twitter
hashtags to support their
push for the State
Government to continue
funding for preventive
health programs, like Healthy
Together Hume, in councils
after June 30. Funding for
the National Partnership
Agreement on Preventative
Health was cut in 2014, with
the State Government
committing funding to keep
them running until June 30
this year. But there is no
ongoing commitment from
the government to fund
programs beyond this date.
The council is calling on the
community to show their
support by tweeting a
picture of themselves eating
an apple and posting it on
social media with the
hashtags #anappleaday and
#fundprevention.
Royal Exhibition Building, Carlton Gardens, Melbourne
Thursday to Sunday, 10am – 4.30pm
www.aqc.com.au BUY
TICKETS
O
N
LIN
E
&
SAVE!
DON’T MISS:
AMAZING
GALLIPOLI
TRIBUTE
QUILTS
DISCOVER AUSTRALIA’S OWN
INTERNATIONAL QUILTING EVENT
A show like you’ve never seen before... full of inspiration and creativity
April 16 – 19
IT’S OUR BIGGEST EXPO EVER –
MORETO SEE, DO, LEARN AND BUY!
“We welcome Dr Krishma Khanna to
Somerton Rd Medical Centre
Female GP who speaks
English, Hindi, Punjabi and Russian”
03NEWS