Mates

Join the community and make a difference.

Become a Mate

‘Mate’ is an Aussie term used to refer to a friend, but to us – it’s so much more than that. A Mate is someone who exudes warmth, empathy and trust, showing up for you unconditionally during good times and bad.

Join our community of Mates, devoted to making a positive impact on the lives of people struggling with day-to-day challenges.

Anyone with a passion for helping others and a desire to use their own story to inspire hope can volunteer to be a Mate at Linkmate by downloading the app to complete the training course and meeting with the team.

SIGN UP

Benefits of being a Mate

Sense of meaning and purpose

Promotion of social impact in the community

Enhanced recovery

Positive outcomes from your own personal challenges

Improved self-confidence and self-esteem

Become a mental health advocate/change agent

The Community of Mates

Here are some of the awesome people providing support to members today

Tee

How I can help

Hover over me to see what topics I can chat with you about!
Family | Abuse | Identity | Hopelessness | Friends | Substances

Hi I'm Tee. I'm a mother, lesbian, student and ex-addict. I'm always jovial and sometimes aggressively kind. I look forward to being an organic sounding board for whatever ails you. My favourite quote is "Drowning in a kiddy pool and drowning in the ocean is still drowning."

Henry

How I can help

Hover over me to see what topics I can chat with you about!
Relationships | Family | Loneliness | Substances | Identity

Hi I’m Henry, I’m a psychology graduate from rural Victoria. My main experience is working with anxiety and depression in people of all ages. I’ve also provided support to people experiencing loneliness, lack of motivation, and trauma

Marianne

How I can help

Hover over me to see what topics I can chat with you about!
Relationships | Family | Study | Eating | Bereavement | Loneliness | Physical Health | Hopelessness

Hi I'm Marianne, and I have a long career in education, disability and with carers. My Swinburne career had me working with lots of uni students and their experiences with family, friends and study. I worked with carers of people from all walks of life, and with people with disabilities. Personally, I have taken care of my son, who has bipolar disorder, and my brother who is on the autism spectrum. I love talking to people of all ages and helping them when they need it.

JOIN

Learning to listen and inspire

Linkmate has brought together evidence-based practices from around the world – peer support, active-empathetic listening and social navigation – to help you learn in a fun and engaging way. You’ll be armed with the right tools to ensure you can be a supportive soundboard for members, as mates should be.

GET STARTED

What our Mates say...

"Being a Mate has been a humbling experience. Linkmate provides a safe space for people to have a friendly chat about their issues, based on trust and mutual respect. It has given me invaluable perspective for my own issues as well."
Sandy
"The experience of being a Mate is fulfilling! I love being there for members when they need it, whatever the reason. It’s an honour to be trusted by someone to support them through a bad day, or to be a sounding board for what’s going on in their life, and it’s been incredibly rewarding to help members recognise and celebrate their achievements, big and small."
Elese
"This app provided me with experience and a better outlook on a career as a therapist during my time as a Mate. I learned a lot from it as well as from the training course."
Magdalena

Next steps

  1. Sign up and successfully complete the Volunteer Mate Training Course
  2. Provide evidence of or complete a valid National Police Clearance
  3. Meet with the Linkmate team so we can get to know you a bit better
  4. Download the Linkmate mobile app and build your Mate profile
  5. Start connecting with and supporting members
BECOME A MATE