These aren't half-baked homilies to be readily trotted out in times of trouble but rather the lived experience of people who have truly suffered at the hands of misfortune.

And it has been the lived experience of one man in many different ways.

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Before Australia went through its bushfire inferno last summer, Shane Fitzsimmons was probably a relatively unknown.

NSW residents might recognise him on seeing his face in the lead-up to and duration of the summer bushfire danger period, but beyond that it wouldn't be the case.

Until April this year, Mr Fitzsimmons served as the head of the NSW Rural Fire Service.

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Because of the that, he quickly became well-known throughout the nation for he was a constant figure of reassurance through those dark days.

He displayed a remarkable ability to understand what people in areas hit by fire were going through, his innate humanity especially shining through in his calm manner and in those times when the impact on ordinary lives made him emotional on the public stage.

It was a mighty combination that, coupled with his many years of experience, made such a difference for so many people.

But as he has told reporter Jodie O'Sullivan in Saturday's The Border Mail, that calm resilience does not mean he has been any less affected.

The fires, accepted by many as being of a magnitude never before seen, took 34 lives, including several firefighters.

The pain of that was only too apparent on the face of Mr Fitzsimmons at the time and he clearly continues to feel the impact of what occurred, noting for one how these losses affected the families of those firefighters who died.

This all means that Mr Fitzsimmons' decision to lend his support to the Border's Winter Solstice event is a tremendous one, given his belief that hope - "to know you are not alone and there is a tomorrow" - is so crucial.