Last week, out past Cumnock, Pay It Forward founder Karlie Irwin had cows chasing the Pay It Forward truck – running, moaning – after smelling the load of hay from nearly 100 metres away and following it as far as the paddock fence would allow.
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“It was very distressing and emotional, the truck was going down the road and there were hundreds of cattle running towards the truck,” she said.
“They could obviously smell the hay.”
Ms Irwin is one of the 10 people spearheading Feed4Farmers, which over the past three weeks has turned from a tiny Facebook group into a movement which next week will deliver more than 40 massive bales of hay to farming communities near Orange.
The group has been organising hay drops to farmers near Cumnock and Yeoval, and in three weeks has sourced hay, organised donations, picked up food – perishable and non-perishable – for humans and working dogs and dropped them to over 10 farmers in the region.
While Ms Irwin admits 10 might not look like a large number, the affect of those 10 hay deliveries for those farmers could not be understated.
“We all know and it’s an ongoing thing said, there are people worse off than us and they’re a very proud group of people… farmers have broken down and wept, he couldn’t believe people were doing this,” she said.
Ms Irwin has been absolutely flat stack for the past three weeks, and has put re-opening Pay It Forward’s new offices and new programs off while she pivots to deal with the drought.
As well as the 40 plus hay bales from Victorian doctor Peter Brown to be delivered in the middle of next week, on Friday Pay It Forward also received word Kennards Hire would be supplying a 1000 litre truck from Dubbo to the group to use.
Kennards is also attempting to get an 8000 litre truck from Sydney to deliver drinking water to the area around Cumnock, which has many farms running very low on drinking water.
Sydney’s St George Football Club also pledged $10,000 to Pay It Forward to help their drought relief, which will go on top of the $6500 Pay It Forward has already raised itself – and doesn’t begin to scratch the surface of the tens of thousands of dollars donated by the wider community to other charities such as Buy A Bale or Rural Aid.
“They love we’re small and we’re local and that we’ve got no administrative and wages and their money won’t be absorbed – it’ll buy feed and water,” Ms Irwin said of the St George grant.
On Friday, swarms of volunteers were out the back of the new, unopened Pay It Forward office, with Ms Irwin at the centre of it – switching from moving bags and hay to taking phone calls to coordinating the truck’s movements for the day.
There’s not a moment’s rest, and it’s been that way all day, every day for nearly three weeks.
“It’s really hard to estimate the hours but we’re busy and flat out daily, the entire team are a very skilled group, the 10 of us on the admin team are working around the clock,” Ms Irwin said.
“There’s no such thing as a regular day but basically a day consists of what farmers come onto the register, what volunteers we have to organise, what farms we’re going to, picking up donations, picking up hay, hit the ground running in the morning.”
Ms Irwin spent seven hours in the truck on Saturday transporting hay to farmers.
She said a lot of people knew it was dry as a dustbowl out the back of Bourke and out west, but Ms Irwin said Orange’s own backyard is rapidly becoming nothing but dust.
“I don’t think there was a real awareness of how bad and how dire their situation was,” she said.
“Pay It Forward has always been really local and helping locals suited us.”
I don’t think there was a real awareness of how bad and how dire their situation was.
- Karlie Irwin
Pay It Forward has set up a register for farmers to be nominated by friends or themselves if they need assistance and can give the information Pay It Forward the information needed to organise and prioritise help, which is all done independently of big charities like Rural Aid.
The Feed4Farmers Facebook group has swelled to 2500 members in three weeks, and has attracted support to events such as Rebecca Childs’ hairdressing fundraiser.
Since that fundraiser, Ms Childs said she got the “fire in my belly” to help, and has jumped behind the wheel of the Fair Dinkum Farmer Fundraiser at Bletchington Public School on August 26, which is aiming to raise $20,000.
“About 98 per cent of my life has been taken over by fundraising,” Ms Childs joked.
“But [farmers] need our help, anyone that can find time, if you can juggle things around and help that’s fantastic.
The fair dinkum fundraise is one of dozens of events which is slated to take place in the coming weeks, and it’s nearly impossible for anyone to keep on top of what’s been taking place, with businesses, schools, community groups, sporting clubs and associations and more all taking the time, money and effort to try and help struggling farmers.
Those who want to help Pay It Forward can get in contact on the Facebook page, or can join the Feed4Farmers Facebook group to find drop-off points, donation links and information about when and where help is needed.
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Max Stainkamph
Max joined the CWD in September 2017, leaving the big smoke of Melbourne to come to Orange, where he stayed until 2020.
Max joined the CWD in September 2017, leaving the big smoke of Melbourne to come to Orange, where he stayed until 2020.
