In November 2012, his wife, Desreen, died after she was hit by a car in front of Ben and his son,
Jackson, who was only two years old. In the direct aftermath, Ben’s focus was on helping his son
to understand what had happened to his mother and speaking openly about his experiences as a
widower, to challenge outdated perceptions of male grief. Since then, he has worked more broadly
to open up the conversation around mourning and grief for everyone.
“You can’t tell someone how or at what pace to grieve. It’ll come back at different times.”
“Humour really got me through. That’s survival: having people around me that could really make
me smile and make me laugh.”
