Wednesday 10^th February kicked off  NRL Indigenous All Stars Week  The week was an all stars week with a number of events headspace was involved in leading up to the Indigenous All Stars v World All-stars game, played on the anniversary of the National Apology to the Stolen Generations.

There was a youth forum, community NRL carnival, launch and lunch at Nundah which included sharing of stories from high profile players including Joel Thompson who supports the yarn Safe campaign.

Joel shares from his experience of going through a tough time “To be mentally strong now, and to be the position I’m in now, I had to work hard for it,” Joel said. “I didn’t have coping strategies when I was younger. I learnt by talking to my cousins, my family and my friends and being more open.  There’s nothing shame about speaking about issues or problems that you’re going through. People are there to help you and support you in any way you need.”

On game day, Saturday 13^th February headspace was there to keep spreading the message 'there is no shame in talking it out'. The all-stars players represented their  Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families and communities, and played with a level of passion and pride that was echoed by the cheers of the close to 40 000 cheering them on. 

Thank you to all of those who volunteered to help us share this message throughout the week and on the day of the game.