Busselton community shows support for Rocky Ridge employee Mitchell Dekkers’ battle with synovial sarcoma

A Busselton community member has received massive support from both his community and workplace as he receives treatment for synovial sarcoma. Mitchell Dekkers is currently undergoing his third round of chemotherapy and his fourth out of fifth week with radiation. He said he didn’t have a lot of time to process the initial diagnosis. “On the positive side, it’s been very fast (and) formative,” he said. “Everyone that I’ve dealt with has been really professional, really helping, but also on the negative side it was very fast between finding out and actually starting everything. (I) didn’t get much time to think it over. “Fatigue has hit me quite hard, but overall we don’t really have a huge amount to complain about.” Mr Dekkers said he was initially scared when he received the diagnosis, but hoped his case was caught in time. “To be honest, we were informed when we first got told not to Google it — but we googled it, and it was pretty scary,” he said. “The survival rates aren’t great, but they obviously have caught mine in time, hopefully.” He said he and his family had received a lot of support from both the Busselton community and Rocky Ridge, where he works as a canning line operator, since his diagnosis and ongoing treatment, but as a self-described “proud” man it was hard accepting the support and funds raised. “I’ve been told by many people that I don’t have a choice in it, that especially some friends at work are doing this no matter what I say,” he said. Rocky Ridge will host a car wash on Saturday to help raise funds to support Mr Dekkers and his family during his treatment, with owner Hamish Coates highlighting Mr Dekkers’ significance to the staff. “Mitch is one of our team members who’s been with us at Rocky Ridge in various roles for nearly seven years now,” he said. “He’s been friends with (and) working with all of our team for quite some time. As everyone does, people get along quite well after working together for a while, and he’s kind of become part of the extended Rocky Ridge family.” Mr Coates said the idea of a car wash as a fundraiser was brought up as light-hearted fun for both the staff and the Busselton community while bringing in support. “The car wash idea was just a little bit of fun that was thrown around by the team because they want to bring a bit of a smile to Mitch’s face and make it something that’s enjoyable,” he said. “We can get the community around it involved, so the idea was just to make it something a little bit fun and a little bit engaging.” Mr Coates said $5000 had already been raised for Mr Dekkers before the weekend fundraiser and was amazed by the support. “It’s been incredible to see the community come around,” he said. “It also shows how much Mitch has helped other people out as well.” Mr Dekkers said he was overwhelmed by the support and told anyone with similar symptoms to not be afraid to go to a doctor. “Just ask your local GP, or get in contact with clinics and everything that is out there, because I didn’t,” he said. “I thought I just went in for a minuscule tear and a cyst cutout, which obviously has turned to all this, and if I didn’t do that, God knows where I’d be now. I’d be working, but secretly dying. “There is so much support out there and take everything support-wise, as much as you can.”