On the Grapevine | Pullar to honour the life of mate

Perhaps it is impossible to put into words.

For Creston Harley, or ‘Crusty’, as he was better known, the death of his twin brother 12 years ago had a lasting impact on his mental health and on March 3 this year Creston took his life.

For the mates closest to him, such as Pullar’s Jack Picken, operations manager Duane Kelly and Mark Perra, not a day passes when they don’t think about their truck driver mate.

“He always had a happy smile,” Jack, 32, said.

Jack, Pullar’s maintenance manager, received the call late that fateful afternoon telling him his mate had been found dead.

“I was in shock, I couldn’t believe it. I appeared to be okay initially, but as time went by the realisation really hit, and I needed people in my friendship group to talk to,” Jack said.

“A lot of men in particular don’t have a close friend, nor do they want to put the burden on somebody else.

“It’s important to surround yourself with like-minded people you can talk to.

“You can’t keep your thoughts and emotions bottled up inside you, you have to let out what is bothering you.”

For Duane, the news was almost impossible to take in.

“When I learnt what happened, it had a big impact on me,” he said.

“We had spoken just that morning and I asked him how he was, he said ‘I’m going well’! When I thought back to our conversation that day I found it very difficult to believe he was gone.”

Creston loved his wife and three children, aged nine, four and two.

Yet, Creston shared a special bond with his twin brother, and a large part of himself was lost when he died 12 years earlier.

“I have managed people for the past 30 years. Creston was the best operator I have ever had, he did jobs that needed to be done without being told,” Duane said.

“We would talk about mental health together and while I knew he struggled at times, he appeared to be fine at the time and ready to talk about things if he was doing it tough.”

Duane, Jack and the team at Pullar Cold Storage are seeking community support for the upcoming event on Friday, September 19, which the majority of workers are taking part in.

“We’re asking members of the community to walk with us, to remember those who have been lost to suicide and assist us in raising funds to help Australians in crisis,” Duane said.

All those interested are asked to meet at Barooga Hotel by 3pm, with the walk beginning at about 3.15pm.

The walk covers a distance of 9km from the hotel to the Pullar Cold Storage facility and back again to the hotel.

After the walk, there will be a welcome drink, a delicious supper and a huge raffle with fantastic prizes such as a 50-inch flat-screen television donated by Barooga Hotel, a $500 voucher for car detailing by Cobram Panel Works, a Noonans Showcase Jewellers voucher, a Supreme Meats vouchers and much more.

Raffle tickets will be $2 each or three for $5.

Pullar Cold Storage has to date raised the sum of $4715, which will cover the cost of 120 calls to Lifeline and provide additional funds to support the organisation’s important work, without which many more lives would be lost.

This year is the company’s first year supporting ‘Lifeline — Out of the Shadows Walk’, which is now in its 13th year, having commenced in 2012. Hopefully other businesses will join together to make a profound impact by raising local awareness of the devastation wreaked by suicide.

Suicide is twice as likely to happen in country areas.

Nine Australian lives are lost to suicide every day.

If you would like to contribute to the raffle or join the walk, please contact Pullar Cold Storage on 5872 2222 or visit the link at tinyurl.com/4xvktpp8