Karen Ashcroft was in the wrong place at the wrong time when she was stabbed in the heart by a stranger in an unprovoked attack.

Key points: Maryborough used to be a thriving gold rush town, but its fortunes have slowly declined

Maryborough used to be a thriving gold rush town, but its fortunes have slowly declined Two homicides in 2018 have rocked the already-struggling community

Two homicides in 2018 have rocked the already-struggling community The Central Goldfields Shire has been at the bottom of the table for unemployment, family violence and housing stress for 40 years

The 52-year-old from the regional Victorian town of Maryborough has been described as a loving grandmother and a generous person who "would give the clothes off her back" to help others.

But on May 14, 2018, she was killed by a man to whom she'd never spoken a word.

Maryborough grandmother Karen Ashcroft was killed in May 2018. ( Facebook: Karen Ashcroft )

It was the second homicide in Maryborough in the space of two months, after 45-year-old John Bourke was found dead at his home in a quiet street.

Two school-aged boys have been charged with his murder.

The deaths had a huge impact on the tight-knit community, which is located in one of the most disadvantaged municipalities in Australia according to the latest Dropping Off The Edge report.

For some residents, it was the catalyst for change.

'Scaryborough'

Maryborough Education Centre principal David Sutton said the tragedies took an enormous toll on him and were among the reasons he took long service leave this year.

"I found myself completely gutted and heartbroken by what had occurred, I was shocked and grieving myself," he said.

"It was a really hard time for us and a lot of people found it difficult to cope. It challenged our perceptions of our own community."

Maryborough was a thriving gold rush town for much of the 19th century. ( ABC Ballarat: Bridget Rollason )

For 40 years, the Central Goldfields Shire has found itself at the bottom of the table in terms of unemployment, family violence and housing stress.

Maryborough is filled with remarkable buildings from the gold rush era, yet it has a reputation as "Scaryborough" not only to outsiders, but its own people.

It was a perception Mr Sutton said he found frustrating.

"I get a little bit precious about this, but for some reason there is an inability to appreciate what we've got — people seem to get lost in this self-deprecation and we feel comfortable putting ourselves down.

"The way people view us compared to nearby towns of Castlemaine or Daylesford is very different. It perplexes me that people focus on the deficits rather than the strengths.

"We have this tremendous sense of community and people really look out for each other, but even kids will say it's a hole."

Maryborough Railway Station was built in 1890 and is one of the town's many heritage sites. ( ABC Ballarat: Bridget Rollason )

'Community has self-esteem problem'

Pharmacist Bronwyn Haywood has been living in Maryborough since 1988.

On the evening of her twin daughters' 21st birthday in 2010, there was a homicide on her street.

She said she had never felt unsafe in the town, but the recent deaths had caused angst, particularly among older residents.

"For some of the elderly living alone, it made them think: 'What would I do if someone came knocking on my door?'

"I know one woman who moved away from the street where one of the homicides occurred."

Negative press surrounding the homicides undid a lot of the good work being done, Ms Haywood said.

"People on the outside look at us and sigh and say, 'That's Maryborough'.

"It's so unfortunate, because our community isn't like that — we get in the headlines for all the wrong reasons.

"We have some of the best aged care in the state, affordable housing, no traffic, great people, and 14 cycling routes that start and finish in Maryborough.

"We need to sell ourselves better. The whole community has a self-esteem problem."

'Nothing has changed in 40 years'

Noel Harvey has been shire chief administrator since 2017. ( ABC Ballarat: Bridget Rollason )

Noel Harvey has been the shire's chief administrator since 2017, when the council and its long-serving chief executive were sacked over concerns of financial mismanagement.

His connections to Maryborough date back to the 1970s, and he said the town still had the same problems.

"I was amazed by the level of unemployment that existed [then] and some of the social problems," Mr Harvey said.

"I look at what's going on now, and absolutely nothing has changed in those 40 years — two generations of people have come through this town and are suffering the same problems.

"Twelve months ago for me was a real catalyst to say let's really push hard to see if we can get things done differently."

Headspace now visits the town's public school on a fortnightly basis, and a community campaign to bring the Royal Commission into Victoria's Mental Health System to Maryborough was successful.

It will be the only public hearing held outside of Melbourne.

"I think that has come about because of the incidents that happened last year," Mr Harvey said.

"It focused us and we harnessed that energy which allowed us to unite to bring that commission here.

"You can't have something like that go on in a town like this and do nothing, especially when you know some of the underlying problems actually created it in the first instance.

"We have workers that come into this town that sit down with troubled youth who have nowhere to meet — they'll sit in the bloody McDonald's and do their counselling sessions — that's outrageous in this day and age that this should happen."

'Like trying to turn Titanic around'

Garry Higgins says people need to get motivated and do something about the town's perception. ( ABC Ballarat: Bridget Rollason )

The prevalence of methamphetamines is not unique to Maryborough, and its crime rate is comparable to other regional areas in the state, yet the town still struggles with self-confidence.

Baker Garry Higgins, who has run a business in Maryborough for 30 years, said the focus on addressing disadvantage had defined the community and affected how it was perceived.

"I'm sick to death of it — most people are — but people have to get off their backsides and start doing something," he said.

"We've had this community feeling that we're in a bit of a rut, and to be referred to as resilient is the worst back-handed compliment, because that conveys to me we're struggling but we're doing alright — we're beyond that.

"We've made a conscious effort to start to change the way we think about Maryborough. It has to be a radical change, we've been dealing with this stuff for 40 years."

He said he believed the planets were beginning to align, with fresh eyes on the council.

"We're developing a community movement; it's a bit like trying to turn the Titanic around, we know, but we're having a real go.

"Next year we want to conduct the Maryborough Ideas Festival, loosely based on the Aspen version in the United States.

"We want people in 50 years to look back on May 2020 as the defining moment in Maryborough's history, when it transitioned from a community based on the past to a community that is embracing the future."