STORY: DJEMBE ARCHIBALD. PHOTOGRAPHY: MEGAN FISHER
A PASSION FOR THE COMMUNITY AND REPRESENTATION IS WHAT MAKES THIS SHEPPARTON LOCAL TICK.
Tone Jessup has done just about everything, the real love is for community and connection.
Tone is especially invested in local youth and representation.
“I'm a lived experienced peer worker for a local youth mental health service,” Tone said.
“It is just the most like fulfilling thing in the world, getting to connect with young people and connect with my community and deliver programs and workshops that provides the opportunity for connection.”
Tone hopes to be a space that anyone can come to and feel safe.
“I’m able to use my lived experience of my mental health journey and recovery to provide the space for hope for young people who are experiencing similar feelings and emotions,” Tone said.
“I've really tailored what I do to be more like community focused because that’s my passion.”
Within the community, however, Tone’s not too fond of a noticed trend — inaccessibility to mental health services.
“When you’re a young person, even if you’re just going through quote-unquote normal experiences, accessing support and validation for that can be tough,” Tone said.
“At the moment I'm really on a rampage of talking about the inaccessibility of assessment and diagnosis for neurodivergent people.”
For those who can’t access diagnosis, Tone is also an advocate for self diagnosis.
“Being able to see the value in self diagnosis is important because it is so inaccessible for your everyday kind of people,” Tone said.
“If you have done your research and you truly know yourself and that’s what you identify with, then there are still resources out there for you.”
Outside of working in the mental health space, Tone is passionate about Yorta Yorta Country.
“It's an incredible privilege to be on the country that you were born on,” Tone said.
“I was born and raised on Yorta Yorta, and when I’m back, there’s such a powerful force.
“I always describe it as ‘there's something in the Yorta Yorta water because it just draws you in and when you acknowledge it and appreciate it, you just get to thrive on it.”
Tone’s greatest passion is visibility for everyone and anyone.
“It’s a really powerful tool to be so out in my community doing things all the time and loud and proud saying, ‘I'm a queer and gender queer human and I’m doing the things I like’,” Tone said.
“All you need to do to create a safe space is just be there.”