The RRT cooks served local farmers 'the best burger you'll ever eat' as part of the RRT Farmers Community Connect event in Waipukurau last week.
The RRT cooks served local farmers 'the best burger you'll ever eat' as part of the RRT Farmers Community Connect event in Waipukurau last week.
Farmers from Dannevirke and Central Hawke’s Bay turned out by the dozen to pick up fencing supplies, share a burger, a coffee and a catch-up at a Rapid Relief Team Farmers Community Connect event at Waipukurau Racecourse last week.
The scene at the racecourse ran like a well-oiled machine: Farmers rolled up in their 4WDs towing a trailer, pulled up at a loading station where trailers were loaded with a bundle of fence posts, before moving on to be loaded with 100 battens, then next came two rolls of wire, 25 permanent strainers, 5kg of staples and a jar of wire crimps.
Sharing the load - the RRT team starts out by loading fence posts at the start of the production line.
Next stop was the load checked, then the drivers were waved to a parking spot near a marquee filled with tables, chairs, food, information stands and fellow farmers.
The resemblance to a well-oiled machine was due in no small part to this being the fourth such event in Hawke’s Bay - in Hastings, Wairoa, Gisborne and now CHB, to help the farming community in their recovery after Cyclone Gabrielle.
“By the time we have finished the CHB event we will have handed out about 72,000 posts,” said RRT general manager Paul Simmons.
“That’s enough to do 280km of fencing. The distance from Waipukurau to Wellington Airport is 260km.”
The fencing supplies are bought through donors to the RRT, which is a charitable trust. RRT was established by the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church in 2014. The RRT is staffed by church volunteers who provide catering services at charitable events and emergencies, nationwide.
The marquee was stocked with tables and chairs and information from support agencies.
The Hawke’s Bay response - which began in the days following Cyclone Gabrielle with BBQ trailers and food supplies delivered, in some places by helicopter - to stricken areas, is based on a system the RRT has long used in Australia, where it has responded to 35 mainly drought events.
Over Cyclone Gabrielle the RRT served about 17,000 meals using multiple crews.
The Community Connect events are about distributing much-appreciated supplies, but even more so bringing the farming community together, said Paul.
“The big drive here is to get farmers off the farm. Farmers tend to be resilient and fight their own wars. It could be ages since some of these people have been off their farms...I spoke to a farmer who had been working from dawn until dark, seven days a week, for three months. The response when we turn up with supplies is mind-blowing.
Trucks and trailers parked up while their drivers take a break in the RRT marquee.
“There is a lot of trauma, I have had people in tears, it’s a sad situation and many people don’t realise how much still has to be done. These events give farmers a chance to talk to people who understand, people they know.”
Alongside the fencing supplies, the marquee is staffed with a crew of cooks making “the signature RRT burgers - the best burgers you’ve ever eaten” and serving coffee, fruit and cold drinks. There are also service providers offering mental health support, veterinary advice, financial and turf advice.
“The rule here is there is no sales pitch. There are about 15 different organisations here and they are all here to offer support,” Paul said.
RRT director Matthew Smith said “We hope the fencing materials go some towards helping local farmers, and we hope they also benefited from the various services and agencies who were in attendance at the events to provide advice and support.
The cooks and kitchen crew turn out the famed RRT burgers.
“It takes time to recover from the impacts of natural disaster and regional communities still need support to recover in the months and years following.
“We know how hard our farmers work but they can also be a stoic bunch and keep to themselves. These events are a great chance for the farming community to connect,” Matthew said.
“Despite the remoteness of some of the farms it is the sense of community which we are able to draw strength from in difficult times”.
