“They are angels,” Gilgandra farmer Maureen Moeris said, wiping a tear from her eye as she spoke of the help that Team Rubicon gave her and her husband Norman recently.
A crew from Team Rubicon spent four days at the Moeris’ farm helping them with gardening, fencing and drafting sheep.
Norman would normally do it, but recently had an operation on his foot that left him on crutches, add the severe drought conditions and life has become difficult for the Gilgandra couple.
“It was just like sending angels to us, we would have been lost without them and we will certainly miss them,” said Mrs Moeris.
“The crew that helped us were invaluable, especially with drafting the sheep and taking the lambs off the ewes, we would never have been able to do that if not for Team Rubicon, they were a tremendous help,” she said.
“We had four of the crew over three days help out on our property.”
Mr Moeris if it wasn't for Team Rubicon the jobs would have piled up and ended up on the list of things to do when he was able.
“The other alternative was that my wife and son would have to help do them, but it would have been months before those jobs got done,” he said.
“Team Rubicon has fantastic people; I could not fault them for their workmanship and their company.
“Just having someone to talk to was fantastic, they are interested in what we do, they are paramedics, firies and army personnel, so they are interesting people to talk to,” he said.
“That really helped me I can tell you. It broke the monotony; I can’t thank them enough, they are fantastic people.”
Team Rubicon spokesman Adam Fry said they had completed 48 jobs in the three weeks they were in Dubbo.
“We’ve helped 48 different families during this deployment,” he said.
“We have eight jobs that are outstanding that we have passed on to others via the RSL, so we have not left anyone in the lurch, we are still helping when we go.
“That adds up to 5090 person hours, so depending on how you cost out labour that is worth a few bob to the community and we have deployed 66 people over the three-week period.
“The figures don’t matter to us though, we just get in and do the work,” he said.
“We are well organised, we triage the jobs as they come in, we can’t do trade type work, plumbing, electric wiring that sort of thing, but we do everything else. I think what we do is about being a good Aussie; it is about helping out our mates, it is as simple as that.”
This article first appeared in the Daily Liberal.
Craig Thomson
I am a media and communications professional with experience across print, digital, social and radio broadcasts. I am currently the Editor of Australian Community Media's Launceston Examiner.
I am a media and communications professional with experience across print, digital, social and radio broadcasts. I am currently the Editor of Australian Community Media's Launceston Examiner.
