Sunday’s ‘hay day’ at the Tenterfield Showground was supposed to go from 9am to 3pm – gifting a large round hay bale and dry lick block to local farmers. When mayor Peter Petty arrived just after 8am, however, the queue of utes stretched from the middle of the main ring right back to Miles Street.
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“I had to go and find another gate just to get in,” he said.
“We had to start loading then or there would have been a major traffic jam.”
Fortunately there were already people on hand to help load the bales, with each farmer also receiving one of the 50 small bales donated by a group of Lismore-based pensioners.
“It all worked really smoothly,” Cr Petty said.
“Once the large bales ran out people still received a small bale and a lick block, and they’re welcome to come back for a large bale.”
Cr Petty said the hay giveaway was a good experience and he felt the farmers were appreciative and the gesture was well-received. The barbecue was fired up early and some stuck around for a sausage sizzle and cup of tea.
“It was good just to see people stop and have a yarn.”
Cr Petty said there was no ‘bad blood’ in gauging individual farmers’ need.
“This is not a time to be saying who deserves it and who doesn’t.”
Last week Nationals’ candidate for Lismore Austin Curtin brought together representatives from Tenterfield and Lismore, local truck drivers and the Lismore Toyota “Drought Angels” in a bid to coordinate individual drought efforts.
“It was a joy to see the first 40 bales of fodder of fodder loaded on at Mallanganee and heading to the drought stricken Tenterfield Shire,” Mr Curtin said.
“Thanks to the efforts of Mayor Peter Petty, Darryl Boyd from Boyd’s Baling, producer Bill Hewittson and many more, in less than a week we have delivered support to those who need it most within our electorate.”
Bentley land owner and fodder organiser Ray Payne has been overwhelmed with the support shown by the community.
“When Matt Bidna from Lismore’s Cheepa Towing and I started out on this journey we were not quite sure what to expect, now we are getting ready to send our second full load to Tenterfield taking the tally to 80 bails,” he said.
The large bales from the first shipment were all distributed within 1.5 hours leaving many disappointed, but they’re encouraged to queue up again on Thursday when the second load will be given away.
Thursday’s effort will start at 7.30am, a little earlier than first advertised to allow MP Thomas George to meet some of the farmers before he has to leave for another commitment.
Cr Petty continues to work with donors on the coast to secure more fodder, with some possibility of cane stubble being freighted up to the district. He expects to receive support at Wednesday’s council meeting to waive the $120 fee for taking potable water, in effect stretching the same Salvation Army funding to cover every four deliveries instead of three.
“If we work together as a community we can hopefully see this continue, providing what people are asking for: help with fodder and potable water,” Cr Petty said.
