Four road trains carrying 280 bales of donated hay wheeled into Coolabah on Monday afternoon to assist some of the region’s drought-stricken farmers.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Twenty four properties surrounding Coolabah and Girilambone each received 11 bales of hay after a convoy of trucks carrying the bales from South Australia arrived, on behalf of Rural Aid’s Buy a Bale.
However it was John Hall and his wife Diane of ‘Rosyln’ who instigated the delivery and encourage other farmers in the shire to do the same.
The pair registered with Rural Aid back in August, and three weeks ago Mr Hall received a call from Rural Aid’s rural counsellor for the central west and western NSW Ruth Simmons who encouraged Mr Hall to get a group of between 15 and 25 properties together to register with Rural Aid for a drop of hay.
READ ALSO:
“So I got stuck into it and rang around to everybody,” Mr Hall said.
“Another chap had been on the Rural Aid register for some time and I got in touch with him and then Ruth Simmons organised it all, I got a phone call on Friday the hay would be here [on Monday].”
Mr Hall said while the donated hay will last depending on individual circumstances such as how much stock they’ve got and and what their feeding regime is, the delivery demonstrates people haven’t forgotten. “It might not [last] long but it’s something, it will help,” he said.
“It’s a big morale boost and it just goes to show that people do care,” Mr Hall said.
“I was talking to a friend of mine on the coast and he said he couldn't do much to help us but he donated $100 to Buy a Bale which is part of the Rural Aid network, and so everybody’s contribution from the cities and the wider community has made a big difference,” he said.
With recent publicity surrounding hay drops for areas such as Condoolin and Dubbo, many questioned the lack of delivery in drought-affected areas such as Nyngan. However Mr Hall said it’s a lack of understanding of what’s required to make these drops happen.
“It was thanks to the Rural Aid Counsellor that I got to know what was required for a delivery, that I was able to organise this drop off.
“Unfortunately I couldn’t include everyone far and wide, it would have just been too big of a logistical effort but the message is if people want a hay drop they need to get a group of preferably 15-25 people together to make it worthwhile,” he said.
Rural Aid not only offers hay, but has provided food and fuel vouchers, food hampers and counselling services to registered farmers. Mr Hall encourages farmers register online at buyabale.com.au so Ms Simmons can check in, touch base and simply have a conversation with farmers affected.