ALL roads will lead to Morisset Showground later this month for a drought relief event for Hunter farmers.
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Locals are encouraged to donate stock feed, pet feed, and bottled drinking water.
The haul will be trucked to parched farms in Hunter towns such as Muswellbrook, Merriwa and Scone.
President of the Morisset Lake Macquarie Agricultural Show, Justin Rumore, said the event would be held on the weekend of August 25 and 26.
“Hunter farmers are doing it really tough,” Mr Rumore said.
“They’re in the middle of the worst drought in 50 or 60 years. So the show committee and show girls have decided to do something for our local region, for these farmers in our own backyard.”
The community fundraiser will be staged in partnership with the Rural Aid charity, whose ‘Buy a Bale’ campaign is well known.
Mr Rumore said the Buy a Bale campaign was a key supporter of Australia’s primary producers, and it enabled donors to specify where their donation would be allocated.
“And we’re concentrating on taking care of people in the Hunter,” he said.
Donations of stock feed – including hay, chaff, pellets, mineral blocks, powdered milk replacement, and any feed suitable for cattle, sheep, pigs and goats – will be gratefully accepted.
Tins and bags of wet and dry pet food – for dogs and cats – are also being sought.
Bottled drinking water will complete the relief packages.
Mr Rumore said donations of food for farmers and their families would not be taken, as such donations impacted struggling shops in drought-stricken areas.
Instead, locals could make financial donations, or give IGA supermarket gift cards which would be redeemed in the farmers’ home towns, he said.
On the Saturday of the relief event, a fundraising auction of various items will be held at the showground.
To donate money online visit the Morisset Show page on Facebook.
