"I felt quite isolated as a teenager and I didn't really have anyone to talk to about it," he said.

"I moved away to feel safer to explore who I was, who I wanted to be, my sexuality and my purpose in life. I felt like it wasn't safe enough to do that in Wollongong."

When he eventually moved back to the Illawarra after 15 years, he still felt that the region was neither an accepting nor a comfortable place for people in his position.

Mr Le Breton will host a forum this Saturday at Wesley Uniting Church to discuss and address issues of isolation, loneliness and self esteem surrounding gay men in Wollongong.

"I want to increase the feelings of safety for others," he said.

"So many things are happening in the area, things are changing and being reinvented, but gay men still don't have this social interaction and safety that all people are entitled to."

Mr Le Breton will be joined by Lord Mayor Gordon Bradbery, a police LGBTI (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transexual and intersex) liaison officer, and other community members in holding the Discovery and Hope workshop.

He hopes the forum will help gay men connect with the existing support infrastructure in Wollongong, as well as discuss and raise ideas about what more can be done to support the local gay community.

"People move away from smaller towns to cities because they're not able to find a safe space to make and meet friends, they're missing a vital part of life," Mr Le Breton said.

"Isolation, low self esteem, depression and suicide are extremely high in gay men in regional areas."

Mr Le Breton has also organised a video Q&A session with Irish rowing champion Gearoid Towey, which will be broadcast during the forum.

"We want to communicate the message that it's all right to be who you are, the message that support is being organised, and create a sense of hope," he said.

The Discovery and Hope forum will be held on Saturday, July 13, from 11am-1pm at Wesley Uniting Church in Wollongong.

Support service for gays and lesbians:

• Gay and Lesbian Counselling Service (GLCS), 85949555

• Lifeline, 131114

• Headspace Wollongong, 42207660

• ACON Illawarra, 42261163

• Gong Guys, gongguys.info

• Unity Wollongong, unity-wollongong.org