He may not have been the most dedicated student but hay run hero Brendan Farrell has made it on to Murray High School’s wall of fame.
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“Bumpa” was officially inducted into the school’s ‘Wall Of Honour’ during its annual awards ceremony in front of more than 600 students, parents and teachers on Monday, December 17.
Mr Farrell, who left the school in year 10, urged students to follow their dreams.
He said he could never have expected to be doing what he is now – running the Burrumbuttock Hay Runners charity that delivers hay and hope to drought-stricken farmers in outback Australia.
His take-home message was to find your passion, find something you want to do and that you enjoy, and just go for it.
Mr Farrell joins other luminaries including country music star Lee Kernaghan and well-known Border entertainer and and all-round nice guy Steve Bowen on Murray High’s honour board.
Agriculture teacher and honour board organiser Maurice Woodman said Bumpa had been a natural choice for this year’s award.
“Brendan’s contribution to drought-affected farmers and his efforts to spread awareness about the plight of drought in the media have been outstanding,” Mr Woodman said.
“The school’s policy, if you like, in making the selection for its honour wall is to recognise former students who have made a significant contribution in their field.
“We’ve had plenty of sports people and even surgeons but it’s also important to have other representation that isn’t necessarily academic.”
Mr Woodman said Mr Farrell’s address was inspiring.
“He spoke about his life at school – he said he learned how to fight and take care of himself,” Mr Woodman chuckled.
“You have to remember Brendan was at school about 30 years ago and things were very different then.”
Mr Farrell has capped off an honour-filled year after being awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia in the Queen’s Birthday Honours in June for his service to primary industry.
But the feisty truckie is quick to point out he doesn’t act alone.
“With the award, you could chop that up into 500 pieces, no worries at all; every ship has a captain but you’ve got to have a good crew behind you,” he said in June.
Mr Farrell is set to hit the road again for the 2019 Australia Day weekend bound for Quilpie in outback Queensland.