Up until last week, most of us probably would have had no idea where Lockhart even was on a map. Located in the Riverina region of New South Wales, it has a population of less than a thousand people and is a traditional country town with classic charm and hard working people.
Now, it is also known for an unspeakable tragedy. The tragic deaths of Kim Hunt and children Fletcher (10), Mia (eight) and Phoebe (six) have rocked the small town about 535 kilometres south-west of Sydney.
At first, I had little sympathy for Geoff Hunt, Kim’s husband and father of the three children, who police believe took his own life after ending those of his family.
I didn’t know the family nor do I have an intricate understanding of what led to this tragedy, but I can’t for a second accept the argument that any man has the right to take away the life of somebody else, especially young children.
The fact that Fletcher, Mia and Phoebe have had their lives taken away from them before they even really started is tragic enough; to know that the person they probably trusted more than anyone in the world is responsible is simply heart-wrenching and unacceptable.
With the dust now starting to settle though, we’re left trying to solve the bigger picture.
A man of the land, what possibly led Geoff Hunt to believe this was the only option? What drove him to this moment? What was going through his mind in the time between taking the lives of his wife and three children, and then his own?
We often hear stories of farmers doing it tough, and there’s even a couple of urban legends about farmers taking their own lives after shooting hundreds of cattle. The location changes but the story generally stays the same.
In this case, this is far from urban legend and myth. This is real, and perhaps just a small indication of a world that those of us living in built-up city centres or suburbia simply don’t understand, or choose not to.
Most of us would probably know more about what’s happening in the United States or the Middle East than we would about what’s going on in our own backyard.
In 2009, I travelled through outback NSW as part of The Great Escape car rally.
We were fortunate enough to meet some amazing people, including the folk who owned the pub in Hillston, almost 700 kilometres west of Sydney. We’d manage to stuff up our accommodation arrangements for the night, and the generous people allowed us to sleep in the pub for the evening. I kept the ATM company while others in our group found solace in the pokie area or main bar.
There were many stories like this one – people were just so giving, so willing to help out someone else in trouble and keen to ensure your experience in their town was a happy one.
But among the 40 or 50 smiling faces in the little pubs on that trip every night, there was always a couple of people at the end of the bar contemplating tough times. They had mates around them, and a beer to calm whatever negativity had dominated the day, but there was something eating them up inside.
Too often our view of the country is the smiling faces and the good people we may meet on a brief stopover or an occasional visit.
We use throwaway lines like “the farmers need the rain” but we don’t really understand what’s happening out there.
Judging by various tributes, Geoff Hunt was not a vicious man who belongs in the annals of history as a serial killer.
But we must not let this story simply disappear with the news cycle – it is perhaps the wake-up call that we all need to find out what’s really going on in the true heart of Australia.
