Retired police officer and counsellor takes on Rural Outreach role
Clyde Lourensz has dedicated his life to something he dubs ‘handrail therapy’.
He is there to lean on, as people rebuild their mental and emotional strength.
A counsellor for 30 years, Clyde has propped up people from all walks of life – from primary school students and young offenders to outlaw motorcyclists, Malawi Police officers and aged care residents.
“I like offering support to anyone who is a bit stuck or facing a crisis,” he said. “Any of us can hit road-blocks, or speed humps, but there is always help out there if you’re prepared to look for it.”
Clyde is now one of those people to phone for help, in his new role as a Grampians Health Rural Outreach worker.
He, along with two other outreach workers, travel 28,000 square-kilometres across western Victoria, to deliver free mental health support in clients’ homes.
Clyde is well-known in the wider Edenhope district, following eight years as a police officer, four years as chaplain at St Malachy’s primary school, and for his ongoing counselling work at Lakeside Living care facility.
He has also joined Edenhope's ‘Operation Flinders’ nine times, trekking through the Flinders Ranges for seven days with local youth.
“It’s really about giving young folk an opportunity to experience success in a highly challenging environment and that gives them a sense of purpose and achievement,” he said.
“Edenhope has almost zero youth crime, so I think it works; it’s absolutely brilliant.”
Clyde is already in tune with the vast Wimmera landscape, travelling between Kaniva, Nhill, Edenhope, Natimuk and Horsham to provide counselling to aged care residents.
He even has farming experience, which brought him to the region 40 years ago.
“I was wasting my time at university, in Melbourne, and my wife and I really wanted to live in the country,” he said.
“I ended up at Longerenong College and worked a couple of harvests on a farm in Gymbowen. I went on to work for the Agricultural Department for eight years, in plant breeding.”
Although he has travelled extensively since, working in Malawi, Africa, and across Melbourne, Clyde’s life’s work remains in western Victoria.
It is where his adult children both settled, along with his 99-year-old father and 90-year-old mother.
“I always wanted to work in a small community and that’s why I ended up in Edenhope with the police force,” he said.
“I like being at the coalface and talking to people face-to-face. This is the kind of work I really enjoy, so I’m looking forward to it.”
Rural Outreach workers offer free non-clinical mental health support, in a location that suits you.
For more information, or to make an appointment, phone: 1300 OUTREACH (1300 688 732).
