Wagin Woolorama: Hear from president Fiona Dawson

Welcome to the 52nd Wagin Woolorama. Tough years come and go and, like good fishing stories, become embellished along the way. What we often forget to do is live in the glory of the good times and these are found woven in between and reflected in the smiling faces of country people. During the recent local fires, the resilience and camaraderie of the community shone, as it does in any country town. People come together to support and protect each other during adversity. What we are promoting is our way of life; preaching to the converted reinforces our belief in agricultural communities and the importance of engaging our city folk is where we need our focus. We already know what we have is worth bottling, we just need to share it. Inviting the metropolitan schools to visit for a day is our first step, as the future of our event relies on the engagement of the young people. To experience first-hand a great country show atmosphere, and start to understand what opportunities are available in the regions, is something worth promoting. Country people have been the backbone of Australia forever and we have this year had some official recognition of this with Dianne and Ian Haggerty, agricultural pioneers with passion, being named the 2025 Western Australians of the year. This is worth shouting from the rooftops and we can all ride on their coat tails because they represent the best of what country folk are. It is a privilege to be at the head of an organisation that is held in such high esteem among its peers. The Wagin Agricultural Society has continued to conduct an annual event for more than 120 years that proudly promotes the development of agricultural endeavour in Western Australia with particular emphasis on regional enterprise. Just as agricultural shows across the nation have been doing since 1822 when the first show was held on the parliamentary lawns in Hobart, Tasmania. These events are now recognised as the oldest community group event supported by some 50,000 volunteers and contributing almost $1 billion to the Australian economy annually. There are six million attendees every year who pack up their car, truck, stock and family to go to the show, and it has become part of our unique Australian culture. It is different for all of us but at the heart we go to connect and strengthen our bond with each other. This can be through education, business, competition and socialising. The importance of these events, large and small, cannot be underestimated as they serve so many in many different ways. Recent decisions being made for us without fair consultation has left some with the feeling that our backs are against the wall. However, in true Aussie spirit I believe that it may be working in our favour. Just as the Rats of Tobruk, with nowhere else to go came out fighting so too are the people of this nation who live and understand the importance of our farmers and their contribution. The various groups are gathering momentum and are taking back the power for the people, as can be seen with the backflipping of our leaders on some of those decisions. United we are strong and effective, and if we can share all that is great about our country lifestyle we can continue to thrive in rural Australia and our agricultural shows are certainly a vehicle to do just that. Please enjoy our show and be sure to tell your friends to visit their local show wherever that may be. Fiona Dawson is president of Wagin Woolorama.