September 22, 2024 • 7 mins
The Act MP and Northland dairy farmer kicks off Mental Health Awareness Week on The Country with his impassioned plea for more assistance for rural communities, following the suicide of his 22 year old son, Brody.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
It is Mental Health Awareness Week here on the country.
It's brought to you by Federated Farmers back in Key
we farmers when times are tough. Here's a Kiwi farmer
who's known tough times. Act MP Northland Cowcocky Mark, Cameron Mark,
you gave an impassioned speech in the House a week
or two ago about your son Brody, who you lost
(00:21):
to suicide. A child predeceasing a parent is not the
natural order. It's something you never ever get over that.
I know it haunts you daily. But you're hoping people
can learn something from your misfortune.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Absolutely, Jamie good to talk to. Yes, absolute gutsakee for
me and my family. I went home and cried a lot,
kick the ground a lot, wondered what on earth if
and holl had gone on, and how I had missed
this and my family had missed this. Rural New Zealand,
(00:56):
you know, has lost another one of its it's people.
And I had gone, of all things to Parliament to
try and stop this, and that bloody rot came to
my own home. It's something I will never understand. And
you know I understand the rigors of mental illness, but
again I don't understand how it got right into my home,
(01:18):
but it did. And at the end of the day,
as I said in the house, and you know, there
are plenty of tears flowing that night. At least we
can save some bloody other Kiwis, because too many good
Kiwis go through the ringer of life and they don't
get the support that they deserve. And whilst I'm a parliamentarian,
(01:39):
I'll do my best to try and put a bit
of light on this.
Speaker 1 (01:42):
Your boy, Brodie was a contractor, a farmer, a good
rugby player, an everyday good Kiwi bloke. He appeared to
have things going his way. Were the warning signs? Did
you miss anything?
Speaker 2 (01:56):
Oh Jamie? You know I have ruminated over this, excusing
the farming pun for a bloody long time since the
day that this boy took his life. I will never
figure that out. His mum and I have discussed this nauseam,
trying to figure out what we'd missed. Was the sign that,
you know, in our busy lives we'd overseen or not noticed?
(02:19):
I don't think so. And at the end of the day,
people have busy lives. Everyone's out there doing their best
to make you know, ends meet and sadly this young man,
you know, life got the better of them, just for
a moment maybe and it was all too much. And
you know the result is is that he's no longer
(02:39):
with us. It just turns my guts to guards that
this stuff goes on. And you know, you know, as
a parliamentarian, without over litigating the point, you and I
know why I went to parliament. It was to stop
this bloody rot in rural New Zealand. I haven't managed
to do it with my own family. Hopefully I can
help some up the people out by talking about it.
(03:02):
And just one final remark I'd make jamie politicians and
bureaucrats and the silly, bloody lawmakers that I work with
and not at fault for my boy. But there's a
couple of observations. We can certainly make the life of
a farmer easier by understanding the policies and how they
affect their the lives of everyday New Zealanders, especially rural ones.
(03:26):
And that's why I'm in parliament.
Speaker 1 (03:27):
You're not alone having been touched by tragedy through mental health,
rural mental health. The suicide stats are awful for rural folks.
You're one and a half times more likely to commit
suicide than ur urban counterparts. I know, legislatively we can
make things easier for farmers, but you know, let's be honest,
(03:48):
it can be a tough life. There's isolation, there's access
to firearms, there's all sorts of things that go against you.
Speaker 2 (03:57):
One hundred percent one hundred percent. I you know, I
alluded to the fact that, you know, crops fail farmers
in the and the muck and the meyer I call
it through winter. You know, they're sore, they're tired, they're wet.
The bank but you know, the bank balances and favoring them.
You might say there's a mood of things that metaphorically
(04:18):
beat up a farmer man nor woman. It's tough, but
that's what makes Kiwi Farms so resilient and Sadly, every
now and again, Jamie, one of us falls off the raider.
Life in rural New Zealand is tough, especially with the
isolation that we have. And are just a couple of
(04:39):
thoughts I'd add to that. Don't be shy about getting
on the bloody bla, talking to your mates, talking to
your your family. I'm a parliamenteering that's lost a boy
to suicide. This stuff affects all of us, and you
know it's it's nothing for a cow kokie or a
wall gar an arable grid. Come clean and say, you
(05:00):
know what, things are pretty tough on my neck of
the woods at the moment. I need to talk to
a mate, have a beer with them, sit down and
go through what sort of you know, not the not
fear rub of the green, talk to people and you know,
maybe tomorrow can be a little bit better than today.
And it starts with having a yarn over a fence.
Speaker 1 (05:19):
How's your own mental health? And I asked, because you've
not only had this tragedy within your family, You've got
a serious health challenge yourself. You lead a stressful life
being an MPEd. You're on the farm carving at the
moment in north and you're going to jump on a
plane later this afternoon and head down to the house.
How do you look after the top paddock?
Speaker 2 (05:40):
You like? Talk to my mate, talk to you, talk
to you know, a group of people, have a have
a yard. There's nothing like having a bloody yarn. Jamie.
You know life is tough, and you're right, I've got
a busy life. But then I make a couple of thoughts.
She'll share a couple of thoughts so to a lot
of other people. And there's nothing like sort of having
(06:00):
a bit of a detox talks your mates. For me
in the summer months, I get in the boat, my
darling wife will tell me I talk too often. And
maybe that's the way to get rid of a lot
of the poison in one's busy life, because every now
and again it gets all of us. We're busy, we
have stress, you know, we've got accounts to pay and
(06:21):
bank managers to please, and especially for rural folks, we've
got all the issues to do with the weather in
our animals. So for me personally, I make damn sure
that I'm not shy about share in my mind if
I need to, And if that includes of saying a look,
I'm a bit flat at the moment, you know, if
that's what it takes to keep my bum true and
(06:43):
point to the ground, I'll do it.
Speaker 1 (06:45):
Final question for you, perhaps on a light and which
is toughest farming through the winter, carving and muck and
meyer or dealing with the muck and meyer you have
to deal with in the bee ive.
Speaker 2 (06:58):
Well, I just a couple of reflect Jamie, I would
say one thing that the Mark and the Mara and
the bee Hire is a lot deeper than it is
on farm at the best or the worst of winter. Yes,
I would preferentially be on farm. There's more common sense
on farm most days there is in a year in Parliament.
But there you are.
Speaker 1 (07:17):
I'll leave it at that, great sumotion, Mark Cameron, thanks
for some of your time today kicking off mental health
Awareness week here on the country, and thanks for thanks
for your honesty, really appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (07:28):
Absolutely welcome you. Take care of my friend quds chat
It is Mental Health Awareness Week here on the country.
It's brought to you by Federated Farmers back in Key
we farmers when times are tough. Here's a Kiwi farmer
who's known tough times. Act MP Northland Cowcocky Mark, Cameron Mark,
you gave an impassioned speech in the House a week
or two ago about your son Brody, who you lost
(00:21):
to suicide. A child predeceasing a parent is not the
natural order. It's something you never ever get over that.
I know it haunts you daily. But you're hoping people
can learn something from your misfortune.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Absolutely, Jamie good to talk to. Yes, absolute gutsakee for
me and my family. I went home and cried a lot,
kick the ground a lot, wondered what on earth if
and holl had gone on, and how I had missed
this and my family had missed this. Rural New Zealand,
(00:56):
you know, has lost another one of its it's people.
And I had gone, of all things to Parliament to
try and stop this, and that bloody rot came to
my own home. It's something I will never understand. And
you know I understand the rigors of mental illness, but
again I don't understand how it got right into my home,
(01:18):
but it did. And at the end of the day,
as I said in the house, and you know, there
are plenty of tears flowing that night. At least we
can save some bloody other Kiwis, because too many good
Kiwis go through the ringer of life and they don't
get the support that they deserve. And whilst I'm a parliamentarian,
(01:39):
I'll do my best to try and put a bit
of light on this.
Speaker 1 (01:42):
Your boy, Brodie was a contractor, a farmer, a good
rugby player, an everyday good Kiwi bloke. He appeared to
have things going his way. Were the warning signs? Did
you miss anything?
Speaker 2 (01:56):
Oh Jamie? You know I have ruminated over this, excusing
the farming pun for a bloody long time since the
day that this boy took his life. I will never
figure that out. His mum and I have discussed this nauseam,
trying to figure out what we'd missed. Was the sign that,
you know, in our busy lives we'd overseen or not noticed?
(02:19):
I don't think so. And at the end of the day,
people have busy lives. Everyone's out there doing their best
to make you know, ends meet and sadly this young man,
you know, life got the better of them, just for
a moment maybe and it was all too much. And
you know the result is is that he's no longer
(02:39):
with us. It just turns my guts to guards that
this stuff goes on. And you know, you know, as
a parliamentarian, without over litigating the point, you and I
know why I went to parliament. It was to stop
this bloody rot in rural New Zealand. I haven't managed
to do it with my own family. Hopefully I can
help some up the people out by talking about it.
(03:02):
And just one final remark I'd make jamie politicians and
bureaucrats and the silly, bloody lawmakers that I work with
and not at fault for my boy. But there's a
couple of observations. We can certainly make the life of
a farmer easier by understanding the policies and how they
affect their the lives of everyday New Zealanders, especially rural ones.
(03:26):
And that's why I'm in parliament.
Speaker 1 (03:27):
You're not alone having been touched by tragedy through mental health,
rural mental health. The suicide stats are awful for rural folks.
You're one and a half times more likely to commit
suicide than ur urban counterparts. I know, legislatively we can
make things easier for farmers, but you know, let's be honest,
(03:48):
it can be a tough life. There's isolation, there's access
to firearms, there's all sorts of things that go against you.
Speaker 2 (03:57):
One hundred percent one hundred percent. I you know, I
alluded to the fact that, you know, crops fail farmers
in the and the muck and the meyer I call
it through winter. You know, they're sore, they're tired, they're wet.
The bank but you know, the bank balances and favoring them.
You might say there's a mood of things that metaphorically
(04:18):
beat up a farmer man nor woman. It's tough, but
that's what makes Kiwi Farms so resilient and Sadly, every
now and again, Jamie, one of us falls off the raider.
Life in rural New Zealand is tough, especially with the
isolation that we have. And are just a couple of
(04:39):
thoughts I'd add to that. Don't be shy about getting
on the bloody bla, talking to your mates, talking to
your your family. I'm a parliamenteering that's lost a boy
to suicide. This stuff affects all of us, and you
know it's it's nothing for a cow kokie or a
wall gar an arable grid. Come clean and say, you
(05:00):
know what, things are pretty tough on my neck of
the woods at the moment. I need to talk to
a mate, have a beer with them, sit down and
go through what sort of you know, not the not
fear rub of the green, talk to people and you know,
maybe tomorrow can be a little bit better than today.
And it starts with having a yarn over a fence.
Speaker 1 (05:19):
How's your own mental health? And I asked, because you've
not only had this tragedy within your family, You've got
a serious health challenge yourself. You lead a stressful life
being an MPEd. You're on the farm carving at the
moment in north and you're going to jump on a
plane later this afternoon and head down to the house.
How do you look after the top paddock?
Speaker 2 (05:40):
You like? Talk to my mate, talk to you, talk
to you know, a group of people, have a have
a yard. There's nothing like having a bloody yarn. Jamie.
You know life is tough, and you're right, I've got
a busy life. But then I make a couple of thoughts.
She'll share a couple of thoughts so to a lot
of other people. And there's nothing like sort of having
(06:00):
a bit of a detox talks your mates. For me
in the summer months, I get in the boat, my
darling wife will tell me I talk too often. And
maybe that's the way to get rid of a lot
of the poison in one's busy life, because every now
and again it gets all of us. We're busy, we
have stress, you know, we've got accounts to pay and
(06:21):
bank managers to please, and especially for rural folks, we've
got all the issues to do with the weather in
our animals. So for me personally, I make damn sure
that I'm not shy about share in my mind if
I need to, And if that includes of saying a look,
I'm a bit flat at the moment, you know, if
that's what it takes to keep my bum true and
(06:43):
point to the ground, I'll do it.
Speaker 1 (06:45):
Final question for you, perhaps on a light and which
is toughest farming through the winter, carving and muck and
meyer or dealing with the muck and meyer you have
to deal with in the bee ive.
Speaker 2 (06:58):
Well, I just a couple of reflect Jamie, I would
say one thing that the Mark and the Mara and
the bee Hire is a lot deeper than it is
on farm at the best or the worst of winter. Yes,
I would preferentially be on farm. There's more common sense
on farm most days there is in a year in Parliament.
But there you are.
Speaker 1 (07:17):
I'll leave it at that, great sumotion, Mark Cameron, thanks
for some of your time today kicking off mental health
Awareness week here on the country, and thanks for thanks
for your honesty, really appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (07:28):
Absolutely welcome you. Take care of my friend quds chat
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