Allan Fitzgerald and Lucas Wallace.
Some people measure life by milestones.
Allan Fitzgerald says he measures it by the people he has lost.
“Over the past two years, my life has been marked by an unimaginable statistic – 10 lives lost to suicide in just 26 months,” he says.
“They weren’t strangers who names appeared briefly in the newspaper, they were my workmates, my friends and my family members. People whose absence still leaves an empty chair, an unanswered phone call and countless unanswered questions.
“Rather than allowing grief to consume me, I decided to channel it into action.”
Sitting down with a close mate of his, Shaun Mitchell, Allan decided to turn his grief into ensuring more attention into men’s mental health was given.
Allan’s discussion has now grown into the Old Walk for Young movement, which combines fundraising, mental health advocacy and community connection with the aim of encouraging life saving conversations.
Following a succession of devastating losses, Allan’s journey started in 2024 after one loss left a lasting impression on him.
“A close mate of mine had lost someone who, looking back, had shown many signs of struggling,” says Allan.
“Like so many Australians, he carried his pain quietly, believing he couldn’t ask for help.
“It made me stop and think: What do we actually do for our mates before it’s too late?”
In his search for a meaningful to honour those lost, Allan says he discovered the Lift the Load Challenge, which is organised annually by the Top Blokes Foundation.
Participants wear a 10-kilogram weighted vest as they traverse 50 kilometres throughout the month of October. The weight symbolises the metaphorical weight felt by many people who live with mental illnesses every day.
October was also the birth month of one of the friends Allan had lost. Participating in the challenge “just felt right”.
“It wasn’t about me,” he says.
“It was about remembering him and making sure people knew they didn’t have to carry everything on their own.”
That first year, Allan and his friend raised $7500.
What happened the following year surprised him as Allan found himself constantly asked by friends, family members, workmates and strangers whether he would be participating in the challenge again.
“My original goal was modest,” says Allan of his $10,000 goal.
“I was hopeful to gather around 12 participants.”
Instead, 46 people turned up in weighted vests to walk alongside one another.
By the end of October, Allan has raised $12,500.
“It showed me people wanted to be involved,” he says.
“They wanted to do something that actually made a difference.”
As the challenge grew in size, Allan says he looked closer and noticed more cracks.
“Women who lost husbands, brothers, sons and friends to suicide wanted to support the campaign but sometimes questioned whether they belonged because the fundraising focussed on young men’s mental health,” he says.
“That inspired me to create Get At It, a mental health apparel brand that carries a much broader message.”
Men a man dies by suicide, Allan says it isn’t just the man who is affected.
A wife is left with questions she’ll probably never have answered. Children growing up asking ‘why’. Parents lose a son and friends lose their mate.
“The ripple effects reach everybody,” says Allan.
Starting the brand was a step in the right direction to encourage men to ask for help when needed. But Allan’s journey was only just beginning.
This year in October, Allan says he is taking the message further of walking to the annual Masters Football Carnival in Young, NSW rather than driving.
As part of the Old Walk for Young event, Allan will begin his journey in Hall, ACT, before walking through Murrumbateman, Yass, Binalong, Harden and Wombat before he arrives in Young.
Throughout his seven journey, Allan will be wearing his 10-kilogram weighted vest as well as a backpack containing supplies, a first-aid kit, hydration equipment and essential gear.
When Allan started planning all those years ago, he never thought his personal journey would become a community event. But when one football mate wanted to join, quickly followed by another and another, Allan’s mission for men’s mental health is gathering momentum.
Allan will also be joined by some of the most special boys in his life: his 15-year-old son and his 59-year-old father.
The three generations will be walking the entire circuit together for one purpose.
Allan is also “uncle” to Lucas and Blake Wallace.
Blake completed last year’s challenge alongside Allan, inspiring younger brother Lucas to become involved this year.
Living with cerebral palsy, Lucas hasn’t let his condition define him and is already hard at work to complete in the challenge.
“To me, Lucas is family,” says Allan.
“Whether it’s helping around the farm, riding motorbikes, skateboarding or simply getting outdoors, Lucas approaches life with determination.”
Lucas will wear his own weighted vest and hopes to complete part of the challenge before joining Allan on his final walk into Young.
“His participation perfectly reflects the campaign’s message: that everyone deserves the opportunity to challenge themselves, be included and know they belong,” says Allan.
The Yass Valley Times spoke with Lucas’s mother about his incredible road ahead of the challenge. The story can be found in the Yass Valley Times.
This year, Allan has upped his fundraising goal for $25,000 to continue supporting the Top Blokes Foundation, who help young men aged between 10 and 24 to develop resilience, life skills and stronger mental health.
Far from done in using his voice to continue spreading the message, Allan says he is also currently exploring options for future fundraising to support military personnel, veterans, first responders and emergency service workers through organisations dedicated to their mental wellbeing.
Allan’s purpose is driven by his own experience with loss and hardships, including family challenges and periods that have tested his own resilience, and he says they have just strengthened his determination to keep pushing for change.
“I don’t want people to think I’m doing this because I’ve got life figured out,” he says.
“I’m walking because I know what it feels like to have difficult days. I know what it’s like to keep getting up anyway.”
Despite this, Allan says he’s no hero.
“This isn’t about recognition,” he says.
“It’s not about trophies or attention.”
If one person decides to ask for help rather than suffer in silence, Allan says he counts everything he has gone through up until this point has been worth it.
“If one family doesn’t have to experience what mine has, then every kilometre is worth it,” he says.
Like all good things, Allan hasn’t gotten to this point alone says he has been surrounded by close friends, family and organisations who have seen his vision.
“Just Shear and Carlie were instrumental in helping launch the initiative,” he says.
“Support has also come from sponsors, including Tims Custom Canvas, Elite Meats, Jack Stillman, Daughters at Hall, Broken Father Podcast, Get At It Co, and many local businesses and volunteers who continue [to] back the cause.”
Every donation, every conversation and every kilometre walked by Allan and his family serves the same purpose to remind people that life’s load can become lighter when it’s shared.
“As we make our way towards Young this October, we’ll be carrying more than weighted vests,” he says.
“We’ll be carrying memories and hope.”
For any Australian doing it tough, Allan has one unified message: You never have to carry the load alone.
Elizabeth Kovacs
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