We moved to Dubbo for one year, at the end of the drought and the start of COVID. Then country living quietly redefined everything — including what I make.

The one-year plan

I moved with the family to Dubbo at the end of the drought and the start of COVID overseas. One year was the plan — a bit of fun away from big-city beach life. The pandemic helped us stay longer. And country living redefined space and time in the expected ways, but also in ways that changed my life.

Since moving, I’ve held four Dubbo Slide Nights, danced in the dark, run Taco’Bout events exploring tricky topics over a taco and a margarita, staged Dubbo’s first Most Wuthering Heights Day Ever, built a Women’s Festival, and spent eighteen months on local radio with my buddy Cam.

None of these things would have happened without the time. That’s the gift of country living: it hands you back your hours — and then asks what you’re going to make with them.

The SPARC in the story

The photo that goes with this story is me with my number one creative collaborator, Camilla Ward. We were one of five recipients sharing $10,000 through Dubbo Regional Council’s SPARC Grant (Shaping Plans to Advance Regional Culture) — alongside the Dubbo Film Society, ORISCON, Dundullimal Homestead and artist Kim Goldsmith. A popular round: $65,000 in applications for $10,000 of funds. Getting picked is a big thing, and I’m grateful.

The grant develops a pilot for Town Telly, an online community show — presented by locals, promoting arts, culture, community heroes and local stories. Through the lens of arts and culture, Town Telly empowers our communities to share their unique stories, shines a light on unsung heroes, and reaches the people other media leaves behind — lifting the whole region’s narrative to drive local pride and tourism.

Win–win or why bother

Here’s the thinking underneath all of it. We all know the struggle worthy causes face for attention and resources — the charity dollar is stretched, and in regional communities the same pockets get tapped repeatedly for the same audiences. It’s why Social Gain is structured as win–win: collaborative projects as a necessity, not a nicety. Align values, KPIs and budgets; leverage resources instead of competing; and everyone’s targets get exceeded while the community actually benefits.

Dubbo often gets painted as a patchwork demographic. My point of difference is that I use thread — I weave.

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Camilla “Cam” Ward and Sharon “Shaz” Quill are Cam & Shaz — eighteen months on DCFM community radio promoting kindness, community and connection, now a podcast, and the presenters of Town Telly. Watch this space.