PHOTOGRAPHY GEORGINA MORRISON
Jackie with MC Stephanie Trethewey, an AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award winner, at a Rural Women’s Day event in Dunkeld, Victoria.
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In her 20s, Jackie struggled with the isolation of rural life. Today, she helps country women forge forever friendships.
PHOTOGRAPHY GEORGINA MORRISON
Jackie with MC Stephanie Trethewey, an AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award winner, at a Rural Women’s Day event in Dunkeld, Victoria.
PHOTOGRAPHY EMMA LEONARD
“It was the beginning of the most fulfulling, purposeful, unexpected, life-changing community,” says Jackie Elliott of making plans for her first Rural Women’s Day event.
The two spoke following a Rural Women’s Day lunch in Kimba, South Australia – an event that drew a diverse bunch from all over the Eyre Peninsula. Jackie is the powerhouse behind these Rural Women’s Day gatherings, having founded the not-for-profit in 2019.
Back then, she was 25 and struggling with loneliness and the isolation of life in rural Victoria. Jackie knew she wasn’t the only one – and, being the do-er she is, she declared 15 October a day to down tools and hit the road for a community catch-up. What was meant to be a one-off has since become a series of sell-out events held around the country every year.
“To feel like I belonged, I had to have a purpose,” Jackie tells Em. You can hear their candid chat on our Life on the Land podcast, available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and all major podcast platforms. Episode produced by Jayne Cuddihy.
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