Rural Women’s Day founder Jackie Elliott on how the event has changed lives

Rural Women’s Day has gone from strength to strength since its inaugural event on October 15, 2019. When Jackie Elliott first decided to organise this unique gathering, she never expected it to expand from her southern Grampians community into a national network for all rural, regional and remote women to connect, collaborate and celebrate. She tells it best in her own words:

“What’s next?” is the question I am often asked about Rural Women’s Day (RWD). Five years ago, when I put pen to paper and wrote ‘October  15 2019’, it was the beginning of the most fulfilling, purposeful, unexpected, life-changing community that I created for myself and I now get to share with others.

I’m so grateful for this community. Just a few days before the first of our 10 events this year, my mum Christine was diagnosed with breast cancer, detected by a routine mammogram. It was difficult not to worry, and in front of 70 women who had gathered in Ballarat, Victoria, I was feeling emotional and unable to finish my speech. As I struggled to continue, my mum appeared from the audience and bravely shared her story, shining a light on the things that were happening behind the scenes.

But in typical Elliott fashion, we got on with it. We still had five out of 10 events to attend.

Mum made it as far south as Adelaide, but we soon discovered that her body had other plans. A serious infection set in after her lumpectomy and she ended up in the emergency ward of the Royal Adelaide Hospital. At first we hoped it would only be a one-night stay, but it wasn’t to be and Plan A, B and C flew out the window. Luckily, Emma Newton, our friend and RWD director, continued the trip to Orroroo and Kimba in South Australia to deliver everything as promised.

Meanwhile, I had my road trip adventure across New South Wales ahead of me. Our first stop was a little memorial hall in the main street of Coolac. I was invited as their emcee, and — for someone who couldn’t speak on a mic a few years ago without having a panic attack — it actually felt so natural.

It turned out that our keynote speaker, Fanny Lumsden, is just as talented a speaker as she is a musician, and so down to earth. We’ll never forget the story of how her mum carried home Fanny’s five Golden Guitar awards in a Woolies shopping bag!

The next day Jaime Lawrence (a regular RWD attendee from Western Australia), florist Sophie Bowe, Graziher’s Victoria Carey and I did a 600 kilometre round trip for RWD Dubbo — and we didn’t stop chatting for the entire drive! Our afternoon was filled with meeting rural women of the west and reconnecting with ladies I first met on a road trip through Dubbo in 2020.

The final event was a very special Rural Women’s Day with my dearest friend and event host Pip Bryant-Hill at Young. Pip and I have been friends for over 10 years, possibly by default when we lived on neighbouring farms at Willaura in rural Victoria. We spent many summer evenings together when her husband was harvesting. We would take turns in cooking dinner or bathing her three children, who I love like my own. (Now she has a fourth, Alice, who is my goddaughter.)

Five years ago, when Pip told me they were moving to New South Wales, I felt like I was going to lose my friend and her family. It was around this time that I realised I needed a way to connect with others. I also thought of Pip, who was moving to a new rural community without knowing anyone locally, and so I began to plan Rural Women’s Day with her in mind.

Little did I know that the year following our first event, we would be navigating the pandemic. However, Pip reached out and asked if she could host her own Rural Women’s Day amongst the cherry trees at Fairfield’s Orchard, her family farm, and of course I said yes. So although Covid restrictions meant I couldn’t host a RWD event in Victoria, Pip did it for me in Young, welcoming 20 ladies for a social afternoon. Today, it’s clear she has created a beautiful community for the women of the Hilltops region. She texted me recently: “I don’t think I would know my community as well as I do, if it wasn’t for your event.” This really is the ‘why’ behind RWD.

Many people don’t realise that running RWD isn’t my full-time job. I dedicate my time as a volunteer and, up until a year ago, I was also working full time in the agricultural industry. Before returning home after this year’s event circuit I travelled to New Zealand for a break in the sunshine and high country air with the wonderful Pip Cameron on Otematata station.

What do I see in the future for Rural Women’s Day? It will continue to evolve, with many more celebrations, collaborations and connections to look forward to, while always reminding the women in our community to book in for those important routine health checks.

I never imagined that by writing down a simple date, I could create such a vibrant community. So far we have bought together more than 2000 women, and many of them have made relationships that will last for a lifetime.

I would really like to share my gratitude to all of the women who have gone above and beyond for the Rural Women’s Day community. Your support, kindness and friendship has helped me in ways I can’t explain. And, finally, RWD wouldn’t have been possible without my mum. She is my inspiration.

Rural Women’s Day is Tuesday, October 15, 2024. To read more and find an event near you, visit the Rural Women’s Day website. 

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To hear more of Jackie’s inspiring story, listen to this fascinating episode of our Life on the Land podcast.