Rural Aid Farm Army creates a ‘buzz’ in Trundle

Posted on 4 July 201931 October 2023

“I could cry” was one Trundle farmer’s emotional sentiment to having the Rural Aid Farm Army on his property lending a helping hand last week.

“If they weren’t here I’d be crawling,” he said.

“We are not running, but at least we are walking.”

One of the volunteers on the farm, Marshal Jacobs from Echuca, said Rural Aid performed a farm rescue on his place a few years ago so he just wants to give back.

This is his third time “giving back”.

Farm Army program manager Julia Hahn said a rescue takes a lot of planning.

“We come in a month out and ask ‘what can we do for you?’,” she said.

“Here we are, we have 70 volunteers for a week, everyone is raring to go, to push their sleeves up and do some hard yakka.

“They are very shy to start with about putting their jobs down, but by the time that month has come around and we are nearly here there is a real buzz in town.

“Before we even touch down there has been a lot of money spent already. We buy as much as we can from businesses in town, we don’t bring anything with us.

“When you spend $1, it gets re-spent three to five times before it ends up leaving the town.

“It helps to regenerate the local economy and helps to keep the money in town a little bit longer.”

Julia said being involved with Rural Aid, the Farm Army and a Farm Rescue is a life changing experience for everyone.

“This trip we’ve had a combination of our grey nomads and corporate volunteers,” she said.

“A lot of the Farmy Army are grey nomads, the average age is about 65 or 66.

“And with the Forsythe corporates we’ve had in, I made a joke that they have now put our average age at about 19! It was nice to have some young blood.

“These people have been so affected emotionally and have connected with the farmers and the people in the town, they want to come back.”

Julia said the Farm Rescue program is growing very quickly.

“So much so, next year we are looking at duplicating our two coordinators on the ground,” she said.

“We are looking at putting together a four or five year plan with companies to have them come back – sort of like adopt the town and come back each year to reconnect.”

Julia said Rural Aid has a lot of volunteers from all over Australia wanting to help.

“One of our ladies who is with us at the moment drove from the Sunshine Coast, just her and her dog,” Julia said.

“She lost her husband and her mum and her dad in a very short period of time. She said to me ‘I don’t know what I would have done if I hadn’t found Farm Army’.”

Article credit’s is for the source: Parkes Champion post

Relief road train rolls into town

Posted on 2 July 201931 October 2023

 A road train packed with hay bales and stock feed was a welcome sight to farmers in the Stradbroke area last week.

FARMERS in the Stradbroke area were given a helping hand last Wednesday, when a road train arrived to deliver bales of hay and stock feed to those affected by the drought.

The relief convoy was thanks to Queensland company Rural Aid’s ‘Buy a Bale’ initiative, which has resulted in a number of drought-affected areas across Australia receiving support.

Each farmer registered with Rural Aid was allocated a share of the $60,000 in feed, as well as a $500 voucher to use at a local independent supermarket, to ease the burden of grocery bills.

Community spirit was alive and well at the hay drop, as farmers helped each other unload square bales and bulk bags of feed off semi-trailers and onto the back of utilities and smaller trailers.

Rural Aid general manager Wayne Thomson said while the fight against drought was an ongoing battle, he was heartened by the response nationwide.

“We certainly hope that Rural Aid makes a bit of a difference to where farmers are at, and the hay drop gives them a bit of a reprieve to find a bit of money to find the food for their animals,” he said.

“Certainly the rest of Australia is still dealing with it; New South Wales is at 99 per cent drought – it’s massive – and to be honest, a lot of our attention is there.

“Queensland is at about 68 per cent, and South Australia is a bit of a basket case as well.

“When it does rain, it will rain and continue to rain, and one day the drought will be over, but until then, we’ve got to be here to support farmers, let them know that people care and know that we’re here to help until they’re back on their feet.

“The sad thing here [in Gippsland] of course is that there has been some rain so the place looks green, but it is just green dirt, and these farmers are still doing it very tough, so this is the first of many drops to come to support the farmers in the area that need the help and just need a bit of a breather.

“To have this sort of reprieve so people can maybe catch up on some other bills is very timely, so we’re glad to be here to help.”

Hawthorn Football Club also threw its support behind the program, donating $14,930 to the cause after auctioning off special edition ‘Buy a Bale’ jumpers, worn during the round 23 clash against Sydney last season.

Hawthorn leadership group member Isaac Smith was one of the spearheads of the campaign, maintaining the Hawks’ reputation of being ‘the family club’.

Hawthorn general manager of community and foundation Kerrie Brewer said the club was proud to partner with Rural Aid.

“A number of our players hail from country backgrounds, and were passionate about the club supporting this cause,” she said.

“Our fans getting involved in the auction means that we’ve been able to provide farmers in need with vital hay and feed for their animals.”

 Rural Aid general manager Wayne Thomson, alongside local farmers Hamilton Gerrans, Brian Nicholls, Jenny Nicholls, Helen Milne and Damian Lee, in front of one of the road trains stocked with hay that came to farmers in the Stradbroke area.

Stradbroke farmer John Gerrand said the assistance was welcome.

“It’s going to be a little help because it’s been pretty tough – it’ll keep the sheep going for a little while and of course the grocery vouchers will be a big help too,” he said.

“It’s fantastic to have it here, because hay is hard to source right now.

“We’ve been hoping and hoping to get an autumn break or a late autumn break, and it would start raining, but, seeing as though it hasn’t, I’ve got my doubts it’s going to do it this year.

“You have to remain optimistic, or else you go nowhere.”

Mr Gerrand said the delivery would be enough to feed his 2000 ewes and 50 cattle for about a week, and was grateful for the feed.

“Most of them [the cows] are away on agistment, the sheep are here and with the rain we’ve had the sheep aren’t too bad,” he said.

“But we’ve got a lot of weed grass, and we haven’t had any follow-up rain on the rain we had a month ago.

“We’ve just had three frosts in a row that were pretty severe, meaning the food’s going to disappear pretty quickly.”

Anybody wishing to become a Rural Aid member or to donate can do so by phoning 1300 327 624.

The article’s credit is for the source: Gippsland Times

Hawthorn’s hay drop

Posted on 1 July 201931 October 2023

Hawthorn Football Club and Rural Aids ‘Buy a Bale’ program this week delivered hay to drought affected farmers in East Gippsland.

The hay drop was made possible through the combined efforts of the Hawks and Rural Aid.

The Hawks donated $14,930 to Rural Aid Australia after raising money in the ‘Footy for Drought Relief’ game last year.

The Round 23 match saw Hawthorn and Sydney come together, not only for a blockbuster game, but also to raise funds for the many farmers doing it tough in Australia’s drought crisis.

In a whole club effort, all players donated their limited edition match-worn ‘Buy a Bale’ guernsey’s for auction. All players, club and relevant stakeholders also gifted their benefits meaning that 100% of the profits of the auction were donated to the Buy a Bale campaign.

Hawthorn GM-Foundation and Community Kerrie Brewer said she was proud of Hawks fans for jumping on board and supporting farmers.

“A number of our players hail from country backgrounds and were passionate about the club supporting this cause.”

 “Our fans getting involved in the auction means that we’ve been able to provide farmers in need with vital hay and feed for their animals.”

Rural Aid’s General Manager Wayne Thomson said he was thankful to the Hawks and their fans for supporting Aussie farmers.

“Sadly, the drought hasn’t broken yet and there are many farmers doing it really tough. The support the Hawks have provided to these farmers today means a lot.”

Every dollar generated from the auction went directly to Rural Aid Australia’s ‘Buy a Bale’ campaign and today saw hay provided to several drought affected farmers in Victoria’s Gippsland region.  

To find out more about the work of Rural Aid Australia and their ‘Buy a Bale’ campaign visit Rural Aid and Buy a Bale websites

The article’s credit is for the source: Hawthron Football Club

Rural Aid Farm Army helps Trundle and learns a thing or two about rural life

Posted on 26 June 201931 October 2023

When Rural Aid Farm Army project coordinators Lee and Rosie Bartlett and their band of volunteers were in Trundle, they were receiving thank yous from people in the community they weren’t directly helping.

But it’s what Lee described as the ripple effect.

From June 16-22, more than 70 volunteers from around NSW, Queensland, South Australia and Victoria set up camp at the Trundle Showground to lend their hand on four farms and around the community.

From painting to plumbing, gardening to farm maintenance, whatever needed doing – the Farm Army did it.

They repaired fences on farms and at St Patrick’s Primary School and Trundle Central School, as well as doing some gardening.

They did landscaping at Berryman Oval and took on miscellaneous jobs around the Trundle Showground, including extending undercover shelter.

While some volunteers helped to install two kilometres of irrigation on one farm, to connect water to the home, others helped to tear down an old, leaking concrete water tank on another property and replaced it with a new tank.

There was also a mechanic who was helping to get old tractors on farms going again.

“Their response has been very welcoming, warm and gracious,” Lee said on Wednesday of the farmers and community groups they were helping.

Rosie added that it was very special when they had people who weren’t affiliated with these groups, thanking them for being here.

Foresythes Recruitment, who sponsored the Farm Army’s visit, brought 36 employees to Trundle, most them young people.

Every year the company holds a business conference, with Foresythes this year deciding to coincide it with their trip to Trundle and calling it the Paper Cuts for Blisters conference.

The Bartletts, who originally come from Old Bar in NSW, were in Trundle for a month before the Farm Army arrived.

Their job is to scout areas that need a little help and to have everything set up and arranged in time for when the Farm Army arrives in town.

They met with committees, school principals, local businesses and farmers.

“Basically we let them know that we’re coming to Trundle, we’ve got the time and ask ‘can we give you a hand with anything while we’re here’?” Lee said.

“They help us too – it definitely works both ways.

“They help us to connect with the bush and our country cousins, and they give us a better understanding of life in rural areas.

“It’s like a refresher course on old fashion values,” he laughed.

The week-long initiative involved the entire community in every way, with even the local lady who drives the school bus stopping in at the Trundle Showground kitchen to help make sandwiches for the volunteers to take with them for lunch, a great example.

“That’s amazing,” Rosie said of the generous act.

The two schools also cooked dinner for the army, while another night volunteers dined out to help boost local business. They also purchased their products and supplies needed for the week locally.

On top of the hands-on projects, Rural Aid handed out $45,000, in the form of visa cards called Country Cards, to Parkes Shire farmers who had registered with the charity.

Farm Army program manager Julia Hahn said they gave $500 Country Cards to 90 farmers.

The money that funds the Country Cards was raised from their Adopt a Farmer campaign.

“If they don’t get them on this run, they get them in the post,” Julia said.

“That’s just one of the initiatives we have.

“When you spend $1, it gets re-spent three to five times before it ends up leaving the town.

“It helps to regenerate the local economy and helps to keep the money in town a little bit longer.”

Robyn Wells from Trundle collected her Country Card on Wednesday. 

She said it was amazing to have the Farm Army in town and grateful they were handing out money to farmers who really needed it. 

“It’s just a surprise they’re able to donate so much and that they’re able to do all of this,” she said.

“It’s a lovely surprise actually. 

“We also received hay from Rural Aid [a couple of months ago] and some water too. 

“They pumped water into our tanks. It’s expensive to buy water – we spend about $600 on one load and it doesn’t fill our two tanks.”

Volunteers Katie Stock from Meningie and Marshal Jacobs from Echuca left their own farms to help in Trundle, saying they wanted to support those who may be worse off than they were.

“I had the Farm Army do a Farm Rescue on my dairy farm and I wanted to give something back,” Marshal said.

The article’s credit is for the source : Parkes Champion-Post

CANBERRA GRAMMAR DONATES MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS TO COUNTRY COUSINS

Posted on 20 June 201931 October 2023

THOUSANDS of drought-affected country children have received musical instruments via their city cousins restoring joy to their lives thanks to Rural Aid’s ‘Gift of Music’ program.

Canberra Grammar School will hold a Moonlight Concert 2019 fundraiser for Rural Aid this Thursday, 20 June from 7 to 8.30 pm to purchase 20 guitars for Boorowa Public School in NSW affected by drought.

Rural Aid’s ‘Gift of Music’ program is designed to bring happiness to children in rural and remote areas by providing them with musical instruments to either augment or establish rural school music programs.

The concert is a student-led initiative of Canberra Grammar School that started in 2018. This year, School Vice-Captain and Year 12 student Oliver Merchant took the lead, using the funds raised from the concert as a way of lending a helping hand to people who put meals on our tables.

“People forget the importance of Australian farmers,” he said.

“You don’t realise what you have until it’s gone and it’s time to look at our own backyard to make a contribution to help people in rural communities – after all, we are one community.”

Canberra Grammar School is a co-educational boarding school with 2088 students including boarders who come from families of primary producers, rural towns and Indigenous communities.”

Rural Aid General Manager Wayne Thomson said, “We are asking all Australians who may have an instrument no longer in use, to consider donating it so we can share the resources with those that need them.”

“The gift of music can change a child’s life and the gift of an instrument to a rural school in need, can change many children’s lives,” he said.

“Much needed monetary donations (which are fully tax deductible) purchase instruments which are on teachers’ request lists and/or the repair of useful donated instruments.”

The Gift of Music program gives children access to life-changing opportunities which music provides in terms of socialisation in country towns, a new skill-set and the confidence, discipline and self-esteem which comes along with training and performance.

The instruments provided include ukuleles, guitars, percussion, strings, brass and woodwind, and come from schools committed to getting behind regional communities who are fundraising thousands of dollars to support disadvantaged school children.

Entry to the concert costs $10 and tickets can be purchased at the door or online at trybooking.com/BDEUI

The concert will be held at the Canberra Grammar School PDHPE Centre, 40 Monaro Crescent in Red Hill with all funds raised will be donated to Rural Aid.

To learn more about Rural Aid and Gift of Music visit: ruralaid.org.au or telephone 1300 327 624.

Image caption (L-R): Canberra Grammar students Saphyre Farrelly, Sebastian Bonanno, Oliver Merchant, Maddie Pik and Rafael Priest.

[All students are involved with organising or playing in the Moonlight Concert].

Media contacts: 
Richard Forbes – 0427270687 or Canberra Grammar School Strategic Communications Manager Reece Cummings 02 6260 9731 | 0411 835 510