Burrumbuttock Hay Runners founder Brendan Farrell has been awarded a Rotary badge of honour for his ongoing efforts to help the country’s drought-stricken farmers.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Rotary Club of Sydney president Alex Shaw presented “Bumpa” with a sapphire pin to go with his Paul Harris Fellowship on Friday, February 24 at Ilfracombe in Queensland during the 12th hay run.
Mr Shaw said in the past four years his club had managed in excess of $2.5 million in donations to help the hay runners’ cause.
“I wish I could award a Paul Harris Fellow to every one of you,” he told the 120 truck drivers and support crew at the Ilfracombe function.
“All of you – hay donors, truck drivers and supporters – are carrying the heavy load.”
On Tuesday Mr Farrell said the award was a “shock to the system” but it was a “really good night”.
He will spend the next week in Muttaburra finalising hay deliveries and tidying up the racecourse after the departure of 120 trucks on Sunday afternoon.
“There are only a handful of volunteers left,” Mr Farrell said.
“But we are still loading trucks with donated hay and I intend to leave the racecourse here exactly as I found it – I don’t leave a hay run half done.”
Mr Farrell admits he is “utterly exhausted” after the completion of his 12th hay run, which set off from Darlington Point, NSW on February 23 bound for Muttaburra in outback Queensland.
He said many of the truck drivers on this run had offered to go the extra mile to do on-farm drop-offs to struggling farmers.
“They’ve dropped off the hay and had a cuppa and had the whole experience,” Mr Farrell said.
“This is where it’s about more than hay – it’s the whole mental health support for people who are doing it bloody tough.
“There have been a few phone numbers swapped and the truck drivers will now catch up with these blokes once a month or so, which is good for everyone.”
The countryside in Queensland is still looking “very ordinary”, according to Mr Farrell who said this year would bring a lot of farmers undone.
“The drought never went away here,” he said.
“This year will break a lot of them – they just can’t afford to keep up the hay to stock.”
But the experience of seeing 120-plus trucks rolling in to outback towns was always “uplifting” for communities, Mr Farrell said.
“There’s a lot of stories, a lot of tears and it’s a great feeling when you get an influx of people who come together to have a sandwich, a cuppa and a catch-up,” he said.
