A 1971 black XY GT Falcon was a major drawcard and "phenomenal" conversation starter at the inaugural Dubbo Cares Day on Wednesday.
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Former pastor, builder, and current volunteer with the Tradies in Sight team, Matt Rendell, brought his car to the event at the Church Street rotunda where it attracted attention from pedestrians and motorists.
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Dubbo Cares Day is part of a new mental health awareness and suicide-prevention campaign led by Tradies in Sight, the Rural Adversity Mental Health Program (RAMHP) and Lifeline Central West.
It encourages people to connect through conversations.
Mr Rendell's car helped get the ball rolling. By late morning he had counted 45 conversations with people checking out the car.
"It is a phenomenal conversation starter," he said.
"I talk about how I restored the car over seven years but what I started with is not what I ended up with. Then I just shift that to their lives and I just ask questions."
Mr Rendell's first-hand observation of a campaign to save lives in Gerringong prompted the launch of Dubbo Cares.