Tell us a little about yourself:

Together with my wife Kim and our adult son, Charlie we run a mixed grain and sheep feedlotting enterprise near Dowerin in the Central Wheatbelt where we produce mainly wheat, lupins and barley.
 

Why did you join the Rabo Client Council?

I was invited to join the Rabo Client Council four years ago by Stephen Kelly, Rabobank’s Western Australian State Manager. My main reason to be involved is to help advocate for rural areas and communities.

What are some of the key initiatives your Rabo Client Council has been involved in:

We are excited to announce that we will be providing funding to St John Ambulance at the Dowerin Sub Centre. Based in many rural towns, St John Ambulance are largely volunteer run, with so many incredible volunteers that make it happen. So, we are putting a fair bit of funding into that, to help equip two of their vans with state-of-the-art first aid resources. In addition, we are providing support to four other St John Ambulance centres, to help communities benefit from their emergency care and support.

We have also been running Financial Skills Workshops for the next generation of farmers to help build their financial literacy. And are hosting Business Transition and Succession Planning information sessions to help provide practical information to assist with family farm succession and business transition.

The Teacher Farm Experience (Teacher FX) Program is another initiative that has been very well received in the past. A two-day program, it provides an opportunity for Western Australian educators to swap the classroom for the paddock to learn about agriculture first-hand. Exposing them to precision agriculture, sustainable water use, new and emerging technologies, and life on a farm, it aims to build the knowledge and confidence of educators so they can incorporate food and fibre production into their teaching.
 

What initiatives have had the most impact?

The support of St John Ambulance is a big one. In a lot of rural areas, we are often not on the map as far as support and facilities go. So, if we can do something to help, it is a bonus. I saw the impact first-hand when my mother broke her leg and there were three local volunteers there to help her. These local services are vital – we need them, that’s for sure.