In their respective careers as a former first responder and a publican, Albury's Patrick Westwood and Chris Maney have seen the benefits of men opening up to each other, particularly when times are tough.
That's why they were keen to help bring The Men's Table charity to Albury.
The initiative aims to support men's mental, emotional, and social wellbeing by getting a group of 12 men, from various ages and backgrounds, together regularly to talk, and open up about each other's highs and lows.
The Men's Table information night will be held at Mr Maney's pub, the Two Fingers Gentleman's Bar and Barbershop, on December 5.
Mr Westwood, who has spent 15 years as a first responder for NSW fire agencies and now works for Resilience NSW, said there is a need for a men's support group in the community.
"It's affected a lot of business and affected families, individuals and men and there's a lot of pressure on many people out there and things are going to remain in this upset state for a while and people need a safe place to talk about what's happened to them and how they are feeling.
"We - men - don't tend to do that so well and we wanted to create a space for men where they felt safe and comfortable to talk about their challenges and feel supported," he said.
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As a publican, Mr Maney often heard women talk about tough times — but not so much men.
"That's why when we found out about this group we wanted to bring it into our community," he said.
Talking more than 'footy and shit'
The Men's Table regional host Michael Collins was pleased the initiative was headed to Albury.
Mr Collins said the group started in 2011 when twelve men, of various backgrounds, started meeting once a month to discuss life's highs and lows.
The charity's vision is Healthy Men, Healthy Masculinities, Healthy Communities.
Mr Collins said the support group is now a registered charity with 39 tables set up in Australia.
"That's about 450 men supporting each other … and we are looking like having 49 tables by the end of the year."
Mr Collins said the group followed "guided principles" that encouraged men to feel confident to share personal stories.
"Men aren't that great at talking to each other, a lot of us just about footy and shit … the Men's Table encourages men to talk beyond that," he said.
Mr Collins said apart from members paying for a meal at their monthly meet-up, membership was free, but men needed to commit to attending nine out of the 12 yearly meetings to build the group's trust, friendship and support.
