Ipswich man Luke Hinschen raises $6k in 385km walk

When Ipswich resident Luke Hinschen set out on a 400km fundraising walk the last thing he imagined achieving was to save someone’s life. Here’s how it happened.

Ipswich man Luke Hinschen was on a long walk across Ipswich for 13 days when a man told him he had saved their life.

Ipswich resident Luke Hinschen saved someone’s life simply by taking a very long walk.

Mr Hinschen has walked more than 360,000 steps in the past two weeks, raising over $6000 for men’s mental health.

But the remarkable highlight of his epic journey so far was the moment he learned his adventures had saved the life of a man battling mental health issues.

During his 385 km journey across Ipswich, the stranger approached him and said he had changed his life.

“I don’t know him, but he actually turned around and said to me, ‘I’ve been following you on social media’,” Mr Hinschen said.

“(He told me) ‘I was going to commit suicide and I was listening to your advice and I actually reached out for support’.

Luke Hinschen has undertaken an arduous 13-day walk across Ipswich.

“And I said ‘That’s what I want to hear’. That’s why I’m doing what I do.”

According to the latest government data, three in four Australians who died by suicide were male.

Mr Hinschen said he also suffered hard times but had been lucky to receive help.

“I’ve seen it. I’ve gone through it myself,” he said.

“I know how it feels, but I’ve never gotten to that stage that I wanted to commit suicide because I had the support around me to get me through it.”

Through that personal experience, Mr Hinschen became driven to improve awareness of men’s mental health.

“Enough is enough. I (told myself) I need to do something about this,” he said.

“Men need to open up a lot more. I’ve seen so many men committing suicide and it’s way too much way too much and we need to reduce that considerably.

“This is why I’m doing what I do, because men need to speak out.

“If they don’t, we don’t get the help, we don’t get the support.”

Ipswich mayor Teresa Harding and Luke Hinschen at the Nicholas Street Precinct in Ipswich.

Mr Hinschen, who has previously trekked from Grafton in NSW to Brisbane for his cause, said men would benefit from more awareness of the issue.

“We need a lot more and you know some of the feedback that I’m getting in hearing men is that the organisation in the justice system needs to change,” he said.

Ipswich mayor Teresa Harding supported Mr Hinschen on Facebook and had a chat with him when he stopped by Nicholas Street Precinct during his long walk.

“If you see Luke walking around Ipswich say hi and have a conversation with the men in your life about how they are,” she posted.

“Problems with mental health are common and not a sign of weakness.

“It can take courage to admit there’s a problem and to reach out for help.”

IF YOU NEED HELP:

Beyond Blue beyondblue.org.au or 1300 22 46 36