The world needs creative, innovative and courageous young people who can connect, collaborate and act. We know that youth may only be 20% of the population but they are 100% of the future. The time is now to let them share their dreams and design the future they want to see.
We are super excited to announce Young Farming Champion Katie Barnett has been selected as one of 18 young people for the NSW Government Regional Youth Taskforce. We look forward to sharing with you the big issues that Katie will advocate for
In the meantime you can learn more about the taskforce below
Press Release
New taskforce to advocate for regional youth
Published: 19 Jan 2023
Released by: Minister for Regional Youth
The Regional Youth Taskforce will get a brand-new look with Minister for Regional Youth Ben Franklin announcing 18 new young leaders from across regional NSW who will advocate for their peers and deliver positive outcomes for young people.
Mr Franklin and Member for Northern Tablelands Adam Marshall met with 2 of the new members in Uralla and said the Taskforce will provide policy and operational advice to the NSW Liberal and Nationals Government to advance the needs of young people in the regions.
“This group has been selected from more than 140 applicants, and includes two young people from each of the State’s 9 regions who will meet throughout the year to focus on the NSW Regional Youth Framework pillars: work readiness, wellbeing, connectivity and community,” Mr Franklin said.
“Throughout the year the Taskforce will join me and senior representatives from Government and its agencies to have their say about services, programs and infrastructure that is important to them.
“The NSW Liberal and Nationals Government knows there’s no better way to be informed on the issues that matter to young people in regional and rural NSW than to hear them directly from this exceptional group of young people.
“In the role, our 18 new members will hone their skills in driving policy change, advocate for real outcomes for young people, and provide a voice for regional youth within the NSW Liberal and Nationals Government.
Katie Barnett from Kentucky says she’s thrilled to represent rural and regional Australia and, most importantly, her region of New England North West.
“I feel privileged to have this opportunity and am looking forward to my time on the 2023 Regional Youth Taskforce. I’d like to see more opportunities for young people in my community including more employment, better housing and education,” Ms Barnett said.
Fellow Taskforce Member Jack Lyon echoed her sentiments.
“Young people, no matter what walk of life they come from, deserve more opportunities and better outcomes in the future than they have now,” Mr Lyon said.
“I want to see more work ready outcomes, youth empowerment, a stronger sense of community and perhaps a different focus for how to prevent youth mental health problems.”
Member for Northern Tablelands Adam Marshall congratulated Katie and Jack on their appointment.
“Kate and Jack will be excellent ambassadors and advocates for the needs of our region and their peers – I wish them every success,” Mr Marshall said.
Mr Franklin thanked the outgoing 2022 Regional Youth Taskforce for their input guiding major NSW Government policy decisions.
“Some of the 2022 Taskforce’s achievements include raising awareness of the need for more mental health support for regional young people, improving messaging to youth about the harms of vaping and inclusion and awareness for LGBTQIA+ young people living in the regions,” Mr Franklin said.
“I congratulate the members of the new 2023 Taskforce and look forward to working with them and hearing their views on how the NSW Liberal and Nationals Government can continue to serve young people across regional NSW.”
As we venture forth into a new year and put some distance between ourselves and the lockdowns, restrictions and online world of the pandemic, we want to take a moment to reflect on the Young Farming Champions (YFC) program and lessons learnt in 2022. We spoke with four YFC alumni – Jo Newton, Dione Howard, Franny Earp and Emily May – to get their impressions of the year that was. We found that the highlights have been mentoring from a supportive community, while a wish-list includes face-to-face workshops (or conferences) and long-term funding to secure the future of the program.
What made you proud about being a YFC in 2022?
Dione: “I am proud of the mentoring relationships that have been developed and continued this year between YFC alumni and new program participants. The support extends beyond the program and its workshops, to mentoring throughout many big life decisions that our YFC are making.”
Jo: “Peer-to-peer mentoring was particularly evident in the preparation of school presentations, with YFC presenting in front of one another and providing advice and support to each other.”
Franny: “The YFC community is a supportive space that allows for mentorship and collaboration. I have experienced this community both in terms of YFC activities such as workshops and school presentations, but I have also experienced the community on a personal level through the new friendships I have formed within the YFC community.”
Emily: “I was proud of the way many YFC stepped up this year and embarked on school presentations as part of the Paddock Pen Pals Program and I was especially proud of the YFC who mentored their fellow YFC.”
A big part of YFC is the Innovation Hub (iHub) where YFC get to workshop big ideas. What did this look like in 2022?
Jo: “Having been a YFC since 2013, this year I am most proud of watching newer YFC like Emily and Franny step up and become involved with the iHub and continue their own leadership journeys.”
Dione: “For the iHub, I am proud of the ongoing efforts to deliver Paddock Pen Pals [into schools] and connect with students across Australia. It is the perfect representation of how Action4Agriculture and YFC have adapted during challenging times over the past few years.”
Franny: “Over the year the iHub has experienced many changes including additions to the leadership team and the structure of the hub. I am proud of the way that iHub operates as a ‘flat’ hierarchy ( holacracy), which allows for each member to assume different roles and responsibilities that speak to them and their interests. I believe this ‘flat’ structure will continue to improve the hub’s communication and coordination.”
Emily: “While navigating the change in the iHub structure we were able to host various sessions and support our fellow YFC despite being a very small team of volunteers. This was very fulfilling and rewarding to be a part of.”
It feels like everyone is a bit over online learning after the pandemic. What things could be done differently to improve YFC and the iHub?
Dione: “I would love to see YFC have the opportunity to attend a face-to-face workshop. The life skills and friendships I have made from face-to-face YFC workshops over the years will stay with me forever.”
Jo: “I think we could probably improve the on-boarding process for new iHub members to help them understand how it works.”
Franny: “I also feel that it would be helpful to provide an on-boarding activity to iHub. As a new member this year, a clearer vision of what iHub hopes to achieve and clear action points would lead to significant change.”
Emily: “I believe more regular accountability workshops would be of benefit. This would allow us to understand everyone’s work and stress loads and evaluate people who may either need a bit of a break to unwind or may need a bit more additional support during busy times. It also provides a structured session for a bit of a debrief, which we all need from time to time in a safe environment.”
What would you do if you could wave your magic wand for YFC?
Jo: “If I had a magic wand I’d provide long-term stable funding to the YFC program as it truly is one-of-a-kind in its approach to building capacity and supporting the development in agriculture’s current and future leaders.”
Dione: “I would wave my magic wand for ongoing funding for YFC, face-to-face workshops and the travel to get there – how many waves does the wand get? It would also be ideal to have administrative support for Lynne for the YFC – everything from on-boarding to following up RSVPs and presentation preparation.”
Franny: “I would love to see an in-person event. In my ideal world, we would have a conference-like event that went for several days and included both workshops as well as opportunities for YFC members to present their own research/work.”
Emily: “My favourite and the most rewarding part of the whole YFC family is the impact I can have on those around me through sharing my experiences and assisting others to follow their goals. While encouraging people to do this is always difficult, having a system that more heavily encourages the giving back portion may just be the push some people need to get them to step up and experience the sense of fulfilment and the greater appreciation for the work that goes into creating this program.”
Final words?
Jo: “To me the community of YFC alumni continues to be a place of shared values and source of inspiration and I hope that the community of YFC can continue to support, nurture and champion one another.”
Dione: “The YFC network is a family where we can learn, grow, and learn some more. We have the opportunity to practice difficult conversations and overcome challenges that instill us with skills for life. The community of practice that has been created over the years is something to be immensely proud of, which includes tried and tested ways that we know work well for young people.”
Franny: “In my eyes, I see YFC as a community network and as a training program. I believe that the network is future-proofed because we have some strong and loyal YFC alumni who are passionate about keeping the conversation alive and work closely with new YFC to help them feel supported.”
Emily: “For me the YFC alumni network is a community of likeminded individuals who share in each other’s wins and learn from each other’s losses. It is a community we can all call upon for support, assistance and guidance but also a community that enriches and inspires others in both the agricultural and wider world to look to us as role models.”
“If you believe in your heart that you need to do something, and you know in your heart its right… and especially when you’re in a position to make the change, you can’t back away from it.” Alison Mirams
This is one of the favourite quotes of Action4Agriculture director Lynne Strong who has spent decades championing young people and watching as they shine and make a difference to the world around them. This belief was mirrored recently at the 2022 NSW Sustainability Awards (also known as the Banksia Awards), announced in October, where both Young Farming Champions and students from our school programs were celebrated. Take a look at some of the winners:
Minister’s Young Climate Champion: Winner – Kreative Koalas participant St Brigid’s Primary School; finalist – Kreative Koalas and The Archibull Prize participant Centre of Excellence in Agricultural Education.
NSW Communications for Impact Award: Finalist – Action4Agriculture/Kreative Koalas
NSW Youth as Our Changemakers Award: Joint Winners – Young Farming Champions Anika Molesworth and Josh Gilbert.
What a night! Read more about Lynne’s thoughts on the awards and young people as changemakers here.
The Team
The NSW Sustainability Awards prove our YFC and our school programs have impact and 2023 will bring more opportunities to fly the agricultural flag with the launch of two new programs: Action4Youth and Young Environmental Champions. Both programs will allow YFC to engage the next generation in agricultural conversations and agricultural career pathways. Stay tuned!
In the Field
From paddocks (and oceans) in Australia and across the world, to wool-selling centres and city-based jobs providing help for the hungry, our Young Farming Champions prove there is plethora of career opportunities beyond (and behind) the farm gate.
One YFC making the most of his agricultural pathway is Sam O’Rafferty who works with Summit Ag in southern NSW, where rain and flooding have impacted the production area and planting season for cotton. Despite the challenges Sam reports that cotton seedlings are established and the crop is powering along. Thanks for the update, Sam.
Francesca Earp’s agricultural field is in Laos, where she recently returned after a two-year hiatus due to COVID. “I was in Laos for three weeks meeting with organisations working on female empowerment, and planning fieldwork for next year’s PhD data collection. I also attended the wedding of one of my colleagues Bouakeo and his wife Koung.”
Providing food is not just a land-based activity as Bryan Van Wyk, our fishing YFC and operations manager for Austral Fisheries, reports from northern waters:
“We have just finished our 2022 tiger prawn season in the Northern Prawn Fishery. 52 vessels fished waters west of Darwin (NT) through to Weipa (QLD) for the past three months catching a variety of different prawn species. At the top of the list sits tiger prawns which are one of the largest and most sought after wild caught prawns in the world. It has not been an easy year for fishers. We have faced many challenges in tough economic climates, which you can listen more about here in an interview with the ABC (6 mins in).”
As part of her successful career as a wool broker Samantha Wan attended AWI’s Wool Broker Forum held in Sydney recently.
“It was highly informative with insightful guest speakers covering global business intelligence, consumer research, education and more, and also an excellent opportunity to network with others in the same area of the supply chain and have open dialogue on current issues.”
A shout-out to George Lehmann from AWI who has been supporting Sam and other Wool YFC by providing access to a range of guest speakers including Bridget Peachey (sheep health and welfare), Miles Barritt (traceability), Mark Scott (Woolmark certification) and Geoff Linden (genetics and animal welfare.) AWI also runs a wool podcast called The Yarn, which recently featured YFC Katherine Bain. Listen here.
Congratulations to Tayla Field who has started a new job with Foodbank Australia as a national program manager for agriculture.
“Foodbank is a non-for-profit business that sources a range of products including food and non-food items such as personal hygiene products for charities. In my new role I will be looking after the agricultural programs that source fresh food at Foodbank including working with growers, manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers. The role will cover fresh products including meat, dairy, eggs and fresh produce, while also touching on logistics/transport and packaging. I am looking forward to building on my current skills and developing a new network within a range of agricultural industries.”
Out of the Field
Congratulations are in order for Katherine Bain who has channelled her love of sheep and agricultural shows to be named the runner-up in the Victorian Rural Ambassador Awards. As part of the competition Katherine spent three days at the Royal Melbourne Show in September where she not only participated in competition interviews, but gained behind-the-scenes insights into how a royal show is orchestrated. Highlights included the commentator’s box (“very impressive”), presenting ribbons to the finest Burmese Mountain Dogs (“a new but very enjoyable experience”), the show’s ‘Big Brother’ room (“where they keep an eye on everything!”) and participating in the Young Farmer Challenge. Well done, Katherine. I think you have inspired us all to have a shot at the Rural Ambassador Awards!
Staying with shows and Lucy Collingridge was recognised for her commitment to the agricultural show movement when she was awarded life membership of the Cootamundra Show Society at their 2022 Show. Lucy began her agricultural journey on a farm in Condobolin, however it was the Cootamundra Show that expanded her love and education about all things ag; from running the ute competition before she could legally drive herself, to competing in the junior judging events to now overseeing the fleece junior judging Group 9 final, and managing the website and social media for the show society from nine hours away. Lucy has been hands on wherever the Cootamundra Show Society has needed her for many years.
Lucy is pictured with her Mum, Sharon, and the Cootamundra Show President Geoff Larsen.
How can we re-imagine solutions to food security, and support SDG 2: Zero Hunger? This was the question Dylan Male took to high school students across Australia and Indonesia as a guest speaker at Asialink’s ‘Asia Education Foundation’ in early November.
“Eradicating hunger and malnutrition is one of the great challenges shared by our global community. Climate change, an increasing population, increasing farm input costs, land degradation, biodiversity loss and conflict are just some of the key colliding challenges adding pressure to our food systems. Positively, agricultural scientists are working with farmers around the world to optimise food production and support a world of #ZeroHunger,” Dylan says. “It was great to be a part of a program that is supporting young people to develop their own solutions and action orientated ideas, which will help contribute towards a world of Zero Hunger into the future.”
Want to hear Anika talk about electric cars in the Outback? Check out this Central Station podcast.
Personal Highlights
Jess Fearnley had a lovely surprise during her holidays. Her partner Christopher Pattison proposed to her on the shores of Lake Macquarie and she said yes! Congratulations Jess; we wish you both a lifetime of happiness.
A career in agriculture can take you around the world and as borders reopen post-COVID our YFC are making the most of opportunities. PhD student Dylan Male is a perfect example.
“As one of the most threatened ecosystems on our planet, grasslands face important conservation challenges caused by land-use and climate change and their conservation is crucial if we are to protect biodiversity and global health. I was grateful for the opportunity to present a poster presentation on my PhD research and how it is helping support the vision of Djaara to return the culturally significant grass species Themeda triandra to the landscape in Australia. I would like to acknowledge and thank all involved in organising the conference, and also to the AW Howard Memorial Trust for supporting this experience.”
Dylan’s Spanish sojourn allowed him to network with peers across Europe and to visit “Basque Country’s beautiful Aizkorri-Aratz Natural Park, where we trekked across rocky subalpine grasslands and learnt about the role of livestock grazing in these fragile ecosystems.”
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The Team
As part of the Action4Youth initiative the YFC have been participating in workshops to equip themselves with 21st century skills. Josh Farr facilitated a workshop on mentoring and Annie Simpson led two sessions – one on values at work and the second on challenging conversations.
In the Field
In the field Australian agriculture is thriving, despite the constant climatic challenges presented, which this year comes in the form of over-abundant rain (how many times do we get to say that in this country!).
Sam O’Rafferty, who works alongside Emma Ayliffe at Summit Ag, reports that planting of summer crops is well underway in southern NSW:
“cotton, corn and rice have all been going in the ground for the past 20 days. Consecutive rain events has made planting challenging and will likely reduce the area planted to summer crop this season. Hopefully we will have green rows in some fields in the coming days.”
Staying in the plant world, horticultural researcher at Applied Horticultural Research, Steph Tabone found herself in Manjimup, WA in late September.
“I organised an event that was funded and delivered as part of the Hort Innovation projects ‘Soil Wealth and Integrated Crop Protection’ project and the ‘PotatoLink’ project. The event was focused on cover cropping, strip-tillage and biofumigation and how growers can incorporate the practices into their farming operations to improve soil and crop health.”
60 people attended Steph’s event – a combination of growers, researchers, suppliers, advisors and other industry members.
Moving on to livestock, Katie Barnett, who works as an assistant manager at “Taylors Run” at Kentucky, NSW, is enjoying busy spring days.
“We have almost finished lambing and calving and we will begin marking soon. We are also in the middle of a 50ha radiata pine harvest. I am lucky enough to be sharing feeding two poddy lambs and one poddy calf!”
Meanwhile Katherine Charles is finishing up life at university and exploring options for her career in agriculture.
“I recently completed an 8-week work placement with SheepMetriX, a sheep genetic consulting business based in Young, NSW. At first, I was hesitant to attend placement with a sheep company because most of my experience has been working with cattle, an industry that I am very passionate about. However, I kept an open mind and went into my placement with minimal knowledge about sheep, but a keen willingness to learn. I enjoyed attending seminars, assisting with fleece weighing and lamb DNA sampling, as well as a range of other activities. Working with Sally Martin and her team was a great experience and one that I am very grateful for. I am glad that I took the opportunity to expand my horizons and learn from an innovative leader in the Australian wool industry. This placement has strengthened my love for livestock, and I will definitely consider a career in the wool industry in the future.”
Still on sheep, Wollongong University student and friend of the YFC Hannah Brien has been back on her family Bella Lana Poll Merino Stud at Dripstone, NSW, which has been part of the Merino Lifetime Productivity project.
“Our stud was among 25 and was involved with the extensive data collection and analysis of the progeny of merino stud sires from across Australia. MerinoLink hosted a field day and dinner to celebrate the closing of this project, which investigated genetic linkages between the performance averages of merino ewes across their lifetime and has facilitated the formation of a new index which represents the methane output of each ewe.”
Hannah’s university colleague Thomas Allman is following in Dylan’s footsteps as he enjoys an agricultural career located in Kyoto, Japan as a 2022 New Colombo Plan scholar.
“The Kamogawa River is a beautiful place and symbolises a bit of peace at the end of often busy Japanese working days. This slice of nature offers views of local wildlife and reminds people to enjoy life off their phones and living simply.”
Out of the Field
Out of the field, agricultural shows are dominating the spring headlines.
Lucy Collingridge sat down with Neil Butler from the Regional 250 podcast recently to discuss all things Armidale NSW and volunteering. Lucy is, perhaps, our biggest agricultural show advocate and has been particularly busy as events ramp up after a two-year hiatus due to COVID. After attending the Narromine show in September Lucy travelled to the Condobolin Show (where she got her first taste of agriculture over 15 years ago) and then to Adelaide Royal.
“Adelaide was a fantastic opportunity to see how youth events are run in other states and to hear how they are continuing to engage youth and show excellence in agriculture through the show movement.”
Congratulations Lucy – your tremendous support of agricultural shows across the years does not go unnoticed.
Earlier this year Katie Barnett was named the 2022 Kempsey Show Young Woman of the Year.
“While in this role I wanted to do something meaningful that would lead to positive change and further education. I decided that I would hold a few fundraisers to support Ability Agriculture, a charity started by local Kempsey woman Josie Clarke. Ability Agriculture is an online platform and community group that shares the stories of those with disabilities in agriculture. Supporting Ability Agriculture means a lot to me as I had an Aunt who lived on farm with a disability and I now have a younger cousin who is wheelchair bound after an accident in 2021.”
Also getting into the show spirit were Kate Webster, Jo Newton, Jaz Green (nee Nixon) and Emily May. Kate coordinated the Wagga Wagga Show Young Woman of the Year Competition.
“I had the pleasure of meeting some wonderful and incredibly passionate young women and to learn what parts of agriculture drive them to get involved in the industry.”
Jo caught up with Jaz (and son Arthur) at the Melbourne Show where Jaz and husband Hayden’s Summit Livestock Limousin Stud was very successful, taking out Supreme Exhibit and Senior Champion Bull (Summit Patriot R53), Senior Champion Female (Summit Cauliflower R56), Reserve Junior Bull (Summit Big Star S46) and Breeders Group and Pair of Junior Bulls.
“One of their cows, Summit Krystal L35 also set a new Australian Limousin female record price of $55,000 at auction, at the Spring Selection Sale IV this week,” Jo reports.
Congratulations Jaz.
At Griffith Emily saw the lighter side of an agricultural show.
“I’ve seen many interesting segments showcased at agricultural shows but this by far was one of the strangest – a display of weeds in bloom was a winning entry, clearly an entry selection set for a laugh. This may be the only time an agronomist can get away with propagating weeds.”
Moving away from shows and onto life-long learning and SamWan has recently completed 6 weeks of TEKLAB VIC, a Farmers2Founders “Hatch” initiative supported by Agriculture Victoria and LaunchVIC. The program, for aspiring entrepreneurs and founders, explores agtech solutions for farm and industry.
Florance McGufficke embarked on a road trip through Victoria during October with 20 Australian and Chinese university students as part of the NFF’s Paddock to Port Australia-China Agricultural Youth tour.
“We got to see firsthand the operation, performance and passion of various growers and agriculturalists in a practical way that was informative and engaging and the biggest opportunity was to network with each other and the producers, researchers and industry leaders we met along the tour.”
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Finally, our YFC are often called upon to share their experiences with others as exampled by Dione Howard who was invited to speak at an event hosted by ANZ Bank in Young, NSW to celebrate International Day of Rural Women.
“I spoke about my career journey, the rural women who inspire me and what it means to me to be a rural woman.”
Prime Cuts
Jessica Fearnley’s impact on agriculture continues to ripple through a diverse audience, which will only increase with her latest gig:
“I have been given an exciting opportunity to write opinion pieces for The Land each month. I am looking forward to using this to talk about opportunities and the exciting things that happen in day-to-day agriculture.”
Well done Jess – we look forward to reading.
Personal Highlights
Congratulations to YFC Alumni Bessie Thomas and husband Shannon who welcomed Phoebe Clara to the world on 19.9.22. Weighing 3.6kg and measuring 51cm in length, Phoebe is a sister to Airlie and Lachie.
Also enjoying family time this month was Danielle Fordham who returned to her family’s West Wyalong property.
“It was wonderful to reunite with the family and be reconnected with the land again after spending two years in the “big smoke” around Newcastle. It was great to help out on the farm by assisting with lamb marking and it was adorable to see the little lambs and unleash my farming skills that I rarely get to use anymore – I was proud that I still had it in me! In the upcoming university holidays, I hope to spend more time out in the countryside and capture more of these heartfelt moments, and appreciate the little things.”
When Steph Tabone takes time out from her work as a horticultural researcher you can find her on the netball court.
“After a great season, finishing as minor premiers, my team made it to the grand final. In the end, we lost by one point in 40 seconds of extra time! A huge congratulations to our competitors who played a fantastic game and to my teammates for their efforts.”
Ending the October Muster is Sam Wan showing us her egg-scellent sense of humour:
“Jo Newton and I were outside our usual agri-industry hen-semble when we flocked to the Kyneton and District Poultry Club Auction during October. It was an egg-ceptional experience but we did have to wing it learning how to bid as we went. It was no peck-nic with buyers milling the aisles busily. Two hens are now chicken out their new home!”
Agility Agriculture founder Josie Clarke (pictured with father Glen) and Katie Barnett are working together to raise funds for the causes they care about
Many of our Young Farming Champions develop their love of agriculture through the show rings and continue the association throughout their careers. YFC Katie Barnett, who works as a farm manager on “Taylors Run” at Kentucky in NSW, is one such young person and earlier this year she was named the 2022 Kempsey Show Young Woman of the Year.
2022 Kempsey Show Young Woman of the Year Competition Winners L to R Senior: Katie Barnett, Junior: Lilly Rosten, Teen: India Dowling
The Young Woman of the Year competition is held at agricultural shows across NSW and aims to find a young female ambassador to represent rural areas and the show movement. The program is designed to develop regional young women, their local show societies and their communities. During the competition participants are given the opportunity to be interviewed, public speak, present and network. Local winners, like Katie, will compete in a zone final and if successful go on to the Sydney Royal Easter Show, where they vie to be named The Land Sydney Royal AgShows NSW Young Woman of the Year.
“Whilst in this role I really wanted to do something meaningful that would lead to positive change and further education. I decided that I would like to hold fundraisers to support Ability Agriculture, a project started by local Kempsey woman and 2022 NSW Rural Woman of the Year Josie Clarke,” Katie says.
Ability Agriculture is an online platform and community group that shares the stories of those with disabilities working within agriculture; raising awareness and dispelling the myth that agriculture is only a career for the able-bodied.
“I started Agility Agriculture in 2021 as a bit of a passion project. When I was 5 my Dad had a truck accident and is now is a wheelchair and I am therefore aware of things like accessibility issues for him. I wanted to share stories of people with disabilities in agriculture to challenge traditional views, raise awareness, create opportunity and provide a supportive community,” Josie says.
“Supporting Ability Agriculture means a lot to me as I had an Aunt who lived on farm with a disability and I now have a younger cousin who is wheelchair bound after an accident in 2021.”
A portion of the money raised by Katie will assist Agility Agriculture establish a not-for-profit charity, which will include a job site, scholarships to university, leadership courses and funding for families. Katie has kicked off her fundraising with a Bake Sale at the Kempsey Saleyards, which raised over $700. A raffle and a 100s club are currently running and a trivia night is to be held in late October.
“Katie’s funds will directly help me with a scholarship to send two people to an agricultural conference in Adelaide next year,” Josie says.
Thanks to Katie for bringing Agility Agriculture to our attention and thank you to Josie for making positive changes to show people with a disability can find meaningful careers in agriculture.
What better way to headline the September Muster (when many of us are still shivering through the tail of winter) than to check in with Bryan Van Wyk as he sends his prawn fleet into warm northern waters. Bryan is a wonderful example of respecting and showcasing those we work with in fishing and agriculture.
“We currently have our fleet of 11 prawn trawlers dispersed across northern Australia over productive “prawn paddocks” ready to deploy their nets for the 2022 tiger prawn season. An incredible amount of behind-the-scenes work goes into getting a fleet like this to sea. I’m talking about a huge collaborative effort from a range of highly skilled contractors, engineers, surveyors, fleet and engineering managers, various suppliers and of course, our crews. We have 60 of the most extraordinary, dedicated, and strongest men and women from all around the world working together to produce some of the highest quality seafood Australia has to offer.
This is the tiger prawn season. Three months at sea catching what many consider to be one of the largest, most premium, and delicious wild caught prawns in the world. At the top of that list sits Skull Island prawns. Skull Island tiger prawns are renowned for their beautiful glossy red colours, versatility in high end dining rooms and sustainability. Primarily sold to Japan, it can fetch a hefty price of up to $100 per kilo retail, but Skull Island prawns are also making their presence felt in Australian domestic markets with many of the country’s best chefs instantly falling in love with the product after cooking with them. Today we raise a glass, salute the people at sea and wish them all a safe and productive 2022 Skull Island season.”
Check out this video starring Bryan talking about the career he loves.
The Team
Despite COVID complications still impacting The Archibull Prize and Kreative Koalas, our YFC are doing their part to bring agriculture into the classrooms. Emily May made her live radio debut with ABC Illawarra talking about the successful Paddock Pen Pals program.
“I am really passionate about this program, which connects school students in urban areas with upcoming young rural leaders, allowing them to learn about the wonderful world of agriculture.” Well done, Emily.
In the Field
Also on the ABC was Danielle Fordham, alumni officer at Tocal College, speaking with Bridget Murphy from ABC Newcastle in the lead up to the celebration of 50 years of female students at the college.
“Representing the Tocal College Alumni is deep passion of mine, as an ex-student and now staff member. I have been given the tremendous opportunity to connect and promote our fantastic community. This significant milestone is not just a special occasion for the College, but most importantly a significant milestone for ‘Women in Ag’. As a proud woman in ag, I am continually inspired by the legacies of the women who have pathed the way before me and I hope to continue their ambition in breaking barriers and promoting diversity in our community.”
Literally in the field is Lachlan White who is on the tractor preparing summer feed paddocks for his beef cattle in the Hunter. Having learnt best practice pasture management from dairy farmer Butch Smith, Lachlan, who is now a farm manager with a large pastoral company, has all the skills and resources to prepare and sow 500ha of summer millet/brassica. His steers will enjoy the summer feed, alongside paddocks of existing kikuyu.
Last week Young Farming Champion and agronomist Sam O’Rafferty hosted a group of growers and fellow work colleagues to Tasmania for a cropping tour. They visited several farms in the Midlands and North West Coast regions.
It was fantastic to see many different agricultural production systems and see some of the amazing crop yields that are being achieved.
Out of the Field
Out of the field it is show season with many of our YFC involved.
NSW Rural Achiever state finalist, Lucy Collingridge attended the 2022 Narromine Young Woman competition in July. Lucy joined NSW Minister for Agriculture and Minister for Western NSW Dugald Saunders, and 2022 The Land Sydney Royal AgShows NSW Young Woman winner Molly Wright in judging the 2022 competition. Lucy was impressed with the passion and dedication the entrants demonstrated for agriculture and their rural communities:
“all of the entrants are outstanding young women and should be so proud of their contribution to their rural communities and ag industries. It’s opportunities like the Young Woman (formally Showgirl) competition that will continue to develop women across rural NSW who are our future leaders and role models for the next generation”
Katherine Bain, representing Beaufort Show, is one of 11 finalists in the Victorian Rural Ambassador awards for 2022. Katherine is representing young people in wool. The winner will be announced at the end of September.
Continuing her duties as the 2022 National Rural Ambassador, Dione Howard, attended the Brisbane EKKA in August.
“It was an honour to judge the Qld Rural Ambassador Award and meet ten incredible young people promoting shows, agriculture and rural life. The night show at the EKKA, a tour through Qld Parliament House and an agricultural tour coordinated by AgForce Qld were highlights of a jam-packed few days.”
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Conferences are always a good place for our YFC to meet up and often present to industry.
“It was an exciting two days as we listened to a range of speakers talk about the potential future of livestock from a social and technological standpoint,” Katherine says. “We also got to put our thinking hats on and work through a future scenario about what farms could look like in 15 years. My table was looking at the potential of using robotics on farm, and what the opportunities and restraints of this might be. We got to meet a wide range of people in the livestock industry, from producers to researchers. I would like to thank AWI for sponsoring me to go to this wonderful event.”
Emily May was attended the 2022 Cotton Conference on the Gold Coast in August and was particularly impressed with the session on reversing the rural brain, which included insights on how to attract city kids to agriculture from friend of the YFC Scott Graham. Presenting at the conference were YFCs Liz Lobsey (discussing raingrown cotton) and Connie Mort (discussing new herbicides) while Emma Ayliffe was presented with the ADAMA Chris Lehmann Trust ‘Young Cotton Achiever of the Year’.
Out of the field our YFC are also stepping up to take on industry and media roles.
Florance McGufficke is revelling in her new role with the Vincent Fairfax Foundation as part of the inaugural VFFF Youth Advisory Group.
“I am very grateful for this opportunity and honoured to have been selected to be a member of this amazing group and work with such an influential and passionate organisation. ‘Backing young people’ is where it needs to start and I believe this initiative is going to create numerous opportunities. I am excited to see where this journey will take me and what I can give back to the experience. Thanks to Lynne for sharing and helping me to ‘go for it’.”
Young Farming Champion and NSW Rural Ambassador Jess Fearnley has also been busy. As part of her position on the Researchers in Agriculture for International Development (RAID) she co-hosted a scholars day before the Annual Crawford Conference.
It was rewarding to put my presentation skills and facilitation skills to the test that I learnt with YFC.
As part of the Rural Achiever program we also had the opportunity to head to visit the Royal Adelaide Show on an exchange program to see the behind the scenes of the show!
Following in the footsteps of YFC Dione Howard and Sam Wan before her, Emma Turner has been announced as the 2022 WoolProducers Youth Ambassador. As part of the “Raising the Bar” program Emma will gain insights into policy development and board operations at WoolProducers, the national advocacy body for Australian wool growers. Emma currently works as the District Wool Manager for Elders in Mildura.
Jo Newton has been invited to contribute a regular column for Australian Community Media.
“I’m excited by the opportunity to be a regular contributor for Australian Community Media’s publications. It’s important the voices and images we see in media reflect the diversity of people working across the agricultural sector. Not only is it important to have different perspectives represented in media, but also to help young people identify role models and be able to visualise themselves working in food and fibre production.”
The FarmOnline column is a continuation of Jo’s advocacy work. In her role as a research geneticist she travelled to Rotterdam in The Netherlands to attend the World Congress on Genetics Applied to Livestock Production in July where she co-chaired a session on “Young Scientist Career Development” alongside Dr Marta Godia, Dr Hugo Toledo and Dr Biaty Raymond.
“It was an honour to co-chair the first Young Scientists Session, a valuable and much needed addition to the conference agenda. Our panellists all spoke incredibly honestly and openly about their career journeys including tackling tough topics like mental health and imposter syndrome, which was very inspiring for all in attendance.”
Photo credit European Forum of Farm Animal Breeders/Farm Animal Breeding and Reproduction Technology Platform
Lifetime Highlights
Marlee Langfield became Marlee Gallagher in late August when she and Andrew married at The Rustic Maze and Country Garden near Cowra. Check out this beautiful shot starring their beloved dog, Ellie. Congratulations to you both Marlee and Andrew.
Many employers over a long period of time, both on-farm and off-farm, have had an expectation that it is the government’s role to provide appropriately trained labour to their industries free of charge. That is flawed thinking: other sectors seem to engage at all levels of education.
They recommend greater industry investment in education.
… initiatives that influence people‘s career explorations, decision-making, choices and actions. Generating public awareness and knowledge about agriculture is one thing but affecting individuals career decisions is an entirely different matter. To design effective interventions to attract and retain staff requires a thorough understanding of how individuals build their careers and the different factors that influence people‘s careers decisions, choices and actions and their job satisfaction and intentions to remain in a job or industry. We need to move beyond simply campaigning for a greater public awareness of an appreciation for the types of work in agriculture.
The Action4Agriculture team are super excited to be given the opportunity through National Careers Institute funding to see what steps are required to turn AWARENESS into ATTRACTION. Visit our website here
And we all know ATTRACTION in one thing RETENTION is another.
This is where our SUPPORT package comes in for EVERYONE involved including careers advisors, students, mentors and employers
Supporting the students ( NextGen Employees ) and careers advisors will be Liv Pennie and team from Become Education
Our Young Farming Champions will play a pivotal role in every phase and this week we are supporting them with a workshop with Annie Simpson from Modern People
In this workshop Annie will explore
● The power of Values & what matters most
● Exploring leading Values frameworks in positive psychology
● Understanding your own Values, and connecting them to your work and life
● Values at work, and finding the role, industry and culture for YOU
● Australia’s topic values, and values through the COVID pandemic
● 7 Traits of Change Readiness & how they show up
● How to embrace change, and grow for the better
We look forward to sharing with you the package we have put together for employers.
Australian agriculture is at the crossroads. It is charging
ahead towards its goal of $100 billion gross value
of production (GVP) by 2030 but is compromised in
that endeavour by its limited ability to find a suitable
workforce.
Our Young Farming Champions know its important to engage the next generation in conversations about careers in agriculture as soon as possible
Today Wool Young Farming Champion Katherine Bain had those conversations with 110 Kindergarten students at Sydney Primary School as part of our Paddock Pen Pals program
Armed with a list of questions provided to teachers by the students, Katherine settled in to share her story of her farm in Victoria
Students wanted to know
How big was Katherine’s farm which she explained in comparison to football fields and netball courts
How many paddocks and what do all the colours mean. Katherine explained the difference between improved, perennial and native pastures
what sort of sheep do you have on your farm? Katherine explained that her farm was very rocky as it was on the site of a former volcano so they had two types of sheep on their farm
Coopworth Sheep from NZ which are bred for their meat and highly suited to rocky terrain
Merino Sheep highly valued for their wool quality
the students asked her what she did every day and she talked about how no two days were the same and the variety of jobs on farm. She talked about how she loved working with and learning from her dad. And how she loved being able to take her dogs to work
Meet Lenny, Zip and Carly
There were lots and lots of questions about Zip
The students wanted to know about the difference between human hair and wool
Katherine is very proud that her family has dedicated an area of their farm to protecting endangered native grasslands
“On my farm specifically we do a lot of work in conserving the native grasslands that remain on the property. These grasslands are part of the 1% of the volcanic grasslands that once stretched from Melbourne to near the SA border. We are very lucky to have these grasslands remaining – so we work with botanists and biologists to work out the best ways of preserving and improving these grasslands”
And the questions and answers continued
It was fascinating to be a fly on the wall watching 50 students queue up to ask Katherine questions
How do sheep sleep?
Is it muddy at your farm?
How long does wool grow?
Why does wool keep you both cool and warm?
Do sheep often get lost?
How many steps do sheep walk in one day?
How much water do sheep drink in one day?
How much grass do sheep eat in one day?
Are some sheep naughty?
Does wool grow as fast as hair?
How heavy do rams get?
Over the past two months our Young Farming Champions have spoken at science conferences across the world, they have presented to students across the Asia Pacific and over the next two weeks they will be talking to kindergarten students.
To have the confidence and capacity to reach such diverse audiences they have had a minimum of two years of intensive training. As Katherine found out its equally rewarding talking to six year olds as it it sharing scientific research.
As the below graphic and statistics show having role models like Katherine engaging with the next generation are pivotal to raising awareness that there is a career for them in agriculture.
As Pratley et al highlight employment offerings on-farm show no signs of declining or levelling off. (See above graphic) Rather, they have intensified. On-farm over the period of 2015 to 2021 inclusive, the demand for management personnel, based on internet advertisements, increased by over 160%
and for non-management staff by around 77%.
The increase for on-farm staff overall increased by 53% in 2021 over that for 2020. In agribusiness, i.e. off-farm professional employment, the demand increased by 44% over the six-year period and by 70% in 2021
over 2020.
These increases seem extraordinary.
The question we ask is are we leveraging all the opportunities we have at our disposal to engage with the next generation from K to 12 and beyond?
Are we ready to see it as a marathon not a sprint?
Are we ready for best practice?
You can read Katherine’s story in Graziher magazine here
Three years ago teacher Zoe Stephens and Action4Agriculture program director Lynne Strong introduced a new way of connecting school students with young professionals working in agriculture. Called Paddock Pen Pals the program utilised online audio and web conferencing to beam Young Farming Champions (YFC) directly into the classroom.
Paddock Pen Pals was launched at Sydney’s Carlingford West Public School, a large inner-west primary school with a high percentage of English-second-language students, where 300 Year 6 students gained insights into sheep and the wool supply chain from YFCs Danila Marini, Dione Howard, Sam Wan and Chloe Dutschke.
At the time Zoe Stephens was a teacher at Carlingford West:
“Many of my students have little time outside and have never visited a farm. In order to make their learning relevant, I wanted to connect them to real farmers to share what they have learnt and see what real farms are actually doing in Australia.”
Paddock Pen Pals has been an enormous success, particularly as COVID curtailed excursions and face-to-face interactions. It has involved a range of Young Farming Champions across diverse sectors of agriculture and inspired students from a diverse range of schools. Relationships forged in 2019 continue with Carlingford West Public School participating again this year.
Our relationship with Zoe Stephens has also continued. Zoe now delivers teaching and learning programs for the City Country Alliance of Schools and has recommended Paddock Pen Pals to 60 new schools. She has even written a Paddock Pen Pals Best Practice manual for teachers just as Young Farming Champion Emily May has written a manual for fellow YFC.
Recently Action4Agriculture program director Lynne Strong introduced Zoe to A4A’s long-term friend and fellow farm blogger Alison Rutledge. Prior to her daughters starting school, Alison created KT’s Farm Life to connect young people in the city to the paddock through the eyes of her then 4 year old daughter
Since Alison’s daughters started school Alison has been coordinating kitchen gardening at St Raphael’s Catholic School at Cowra, in central-west New South Wales.
Keen to support Zoe’s work connecting country and city schools Alison devised Paddock Pen Pals with a twist. Influenced by our Young Farming Champions she asked her own daughters – Kaitlyn (KT) now 15 and Erin now 10 to create a video showing life on their farm with their 3000 sheep, 200 cows, 13 chooks and working dogs, showing typical activities such bottle-feeding poddy lambs, hay-feeding cattle and delivering new-born calves.
You can catch Kaitlyn and Erin’s wonderful version of Paddock Pen Pals here.
Beautiful new friendships are now being developed on the back of the video as students from different schools swap letters and share stories; a lasting legacy of the Paddock Pen Pals program and the Young Farming Champions who have inspired Mini-Mes.
The Muster showcases the careers, advocacy and lifetime highlights of our Young Farming Champions and it is usually peppered with stories from our YFC alumni. However, in this Muster it is the newbies – those undertaking Cultivate and still learning the ropes – who shine; taking on leadership positions, talking to the next generation, excelling in their studies and revelling in their agricultural careers. Read on to see how Danielle, Lachlan, Florance and Sam are taking the lead to be confident and trusted change-makers – alongside their YFC alumni mentors and friends.
The Team
With The Archibull Prize and Kreative Koalas ramping up in schools across the country our YFC have been busy connecting with students. Lake Illawarra High School (The Archibull Prize) recently held an Urban2AG careers day and new YFC Danielle Fordham and Lachlan White shared their agricultural career journeys and joined students in a one-on-one ‘speed dating’ session to answer students’ in-depth questions.
Paddock Pen Pals has kicked off in primary schools participating in Kreative Koalas with Chatswood Primary School and Carlingford West Primary School leading the charge. Paddock Pen Pals gives students the opportunity to engage with YFC across a diverse range of agricultural industries including agronomy, sheep production and fisheries. Thanks to Emily May, Dione Howard, Katherine Bain, Sam Wan, Bryan Van Wyk, Lucy Collingridge, Dylan Male and YFC friend Kate McBride for stepping up to speak with our next generation.
In the Field
New YFC Sam O’Rafferty, who works with Emma Ayliffe at Summit Ag, is enjoying his agricultural career as an irrigation agronomist, helping growers produce crops such as cotton, corn, sunflowers, wheat and canola. Here is Sam in a cotton paddock that is ready to harvest, on a farm at Coleambally in Southern NSW.
Also enjoying his career is our fishing YFC Bryan Van Wyk, who is helping introduce new technology to the prawn industry. “One of the exciting projects we are working on is a new prawn processing invention which makes the most of limited available deck space on board fishing vessels. This never-seen-before multi-layered sorting belt and dip tank configuration will allow more prawns to be processed faster, improve product quality and reduce crew fatigue. It will also fit the longer dip requirements for odourless sulphite-free preservatives, which will improve working environments for crews at sea, remove sulphite allergens for consumers and open new overseas markets. Innovation is something I really enjoy. It’s all about finding better ways to do things and improving your industry and business for the future”
Bryan with chief draftsman Gavin Stone adding final touches to the new technology.
Meg Rice works as a senior policy officer at Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment in the rural location of Goondiwindi (QLD) and appreciates how a career in agriculture can take her out of the city environ. “How lucky am I that this is the view from my office window”.
A crop of wheat emerging after recent rain in south western Queensland.
Danila Marini’s day job as a livestock researcher involves disseminating new research about her virtual fencing projects and this month she was happy to speak at her first face-to-face conference in two years at The Australian Association of Animal Sciences 34th biannual conference in Cairns.
“As part of the Animal Production Science Journals special issue for the conference I was invited to prepare a full paper on ‘Comparison of virtually fencing and electrically fencing sheep for pasture management’ as well as give a 10 minute oral presentation on the research at the conference itself. It’s always important to share your research at these types of events and it is a great way to make new connections. I had a great time and it’s always interesting to see the other research that is being undertaken in the agricultural industry.”
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Young Farming Champions Veronika Vicic, Danila Marini, Steph Fowler and Dione Howard all presented at the conference
Out of the Field
The Australian Association of Animal Sciences conference also saw Dione Howard and Jo Newton band together with Lynne Strong, Larraine Larri and Nicole McDonald to prepare an abstract and presentation on how Action4Agriculture’s school-based programs are helping improve agriculture’s social license.
“It was a wonderful opportunity to present A4A’s research to the scientific community and take questions from a curious audience,” Dione says.
It has been a huge month for conferences and presentations with many YFC in action.
Dylan Male was invited by the Asia Education Foundation (AEF) to be a guest speaker at the ‘Global Goals: Environmental Sustainability Forum’, which was delivered online to primary schools across QLD.
“I spoke to students about the important role that farmers and agricultural scientists have in ensuring we live in a world of zero hunger and overcoming the challenges of climate change. I was able to share my experiences of working in PNG and Solomon Islands to demonstrate the importance of food security in our regional neighbourhood. What I liked most about this experience was seeing just how engaged the students were on these topics, and how willing they are to listen, learn and take action.”
Florance McGufficke attended the 2022 MerinoLink conference in Wagga Wagga.
“We had a range of speakers from industry body representatives, researchers, CEOs, young early- career starters and producers; all experts in their field, educating us about research projects, ewe reproduction, retail and the need for positive promotion of agriculture. There are a large number of passionate and enthusiastic people in agriculture and with the right people in the right places I believe great things will be achieved.”
Franny Earp is currently in the UK for a film summer school held by the UCL anthropology department but before she left she was as busy as ever.
Dylan spoke on the topic ‘Survive and Thrive: Stories from Students’.
“During the discussion, we shared stories of our PhD experiences and tried to make light of the challenges we have faced by sharing a story of our ‘funny failures from the field’. This discussion made me feel like I wasn’t alone in my PhD journey, and I would like to thank and congratulate Fran for running such valuable session,” Dylan says.
“It was a privilege to be asked to be part of this and my role was to share some alternative lights on how to be a farmer without owning dirt,” Emma says.
Listen to Tim talk about his experience on Generation Ag here
Lucy Collingridge attended the 2022 Robb College Agrimixer earlier this month.
“I spoke to the students about my roles as a Biosecurity Officer and Technical Officer Vertebrate Pests, and the career opportunities within our agricultural industries.”
Away from conference events our YFC spread the good agricultural word in other forums with Lucy catching up with Mate Helping Mate founder John Harper to discuss how she maintains her mental health and keeps an eye out for mates. Listen to the MHM podcast episode, titled ‘Pat a Dog Day’, here.
Sam Wan featured in Landline’s ‘Magic Merinos’ segment as part of the ABC’s 90th Birthday Celebrations ‘Things that Made Australia’.” Read more about Sam and wool here and see the Landline episode here.
Our YFC were also learning with Dione Howard and Katherine Bain attending the acclaimed AWI Breeding Leadership course in Clare, SA, with both ladies raving about the experience:
“I think most leadership courses can get lost in the aspirational ideas and you leave without gaining any real skills but over the week at Breeding Leadership we had lots of discussions around issues like farm succession, communication and governance that, for me, led to some great ideas to bring home to the farm. I left feeling excited for the future of wool both on and off farm,” Katherine says.
“A group of 19 young wool industry members came together to learn about ourselves and how we can best work within and build the farming businesses we’re involved in. The course was facilitated by Pinion Advisory and we were treated to talks and stud tours, from those out there in the industry with learnings and wisdom to share. The future of the industry is bright and I left feeling inspired for what’s to come,” Dione says.
And when not sharing their stories or learning new skills our YFC give back to communities who have supported them.
Lucy Collingridge and Jessica Fearnley continued their long-running commitment to agricultural shows and have been welcomed as the 2022 Rural Achiever representative and Group 11 Delegate, respectively, to the ASC of NSW Next Generation committee, the junior arm of AgShows NSW.
“This is an opportunity for us to give back to rural Australia and develop the future of agriculture. Agricultural shows are not only a great opportunity for our communities to come together but they also provide a platform for youth development through competitions such as Young Judges and Paraders, and they link key industry professionals with youth who want to jump in to our industry,” Lucy says.
James Cleaver 2019 NSW Rural Achiever, Dione Howard 2020 NSW Rural Achiever and 2022 National Ambassador, Minister Dugald Saunders (Agriculture/Western NSW), Lucy Collingridge 2022 NSW Rural Achiever finalist and Jessica Fearnley 2022 NSW Rural Achiever winner
Jess also attended the bicentennial celebration for the RAS, which turned 200 this year, catching up with RAS Council members, youth group members, young women and Rural Achievers.
Prime Cuts
With funding recently received from the Vincent Fairfax Family Foundation to enable our new program, Young Environmental Champions, we are pleased to announce that new YFC Florance McGufficke has been appointed to the inaugural VFFF Youth Advisory Group – a forum of youth voices that guide and inform VFFF grant-making. Congratulations Florance.
Another new YFC making an early impact is Danielle Fordham who recently received the University of Newcastle Beryl Nashar Prize in Level 1000 Earth Sciences and the Howard Bridgman Prize for First Year Environmental Science. Both awards were in recognition of her 2021 academic performance.
“I was deeply honoured to receive these awards and it encourages me to keep on striving and putting in the work for a better and brighter future for our community and environment. Personally, these academic awards were an unexpected surprise that came from me just giving university a go after many years of thinking I wasn’t good enough. This recognition is not just for me but for my parents and supporters who get me through the challenges and wins. Thank you so much. My motto through life is when in doubt, just give it a go!”
Lifetime Highlights
One of our lifetime highlights comes this month from Lucy Collingridge who is gifting lifetime highlights to others through the donation of blood, something she does as often as she can.
“At first I was nervous as I wasn’t sure what the whole process was like but I jumped in this time last year to give it a go. It’s really rewarding knowing I can spend an hour donating plasma which will be turned in to one of 18 lifesaving products for our most vulnerable. It could be us, or our family and friends that need an infusion one day so it’s definitely a rewarding way to spend an hour of your day. Given that agriculture is one of the most dangerous careers, I see it as another way to support Australian agriculture and our rural communities.”
You are an inspiration, Lucy!
Equally inspirational is another Wool YFC Emma Turner – how could you not be inspired to give blood with these wonderful young women as role models
And saving our best snippet of Muster news for last, huge congratulations to Dione Howard who announced her engagement last week to a lucky bloke named Joe Fitzgerald. The whole team wishes you both all the best for a healthy and happy life together.
