The Salvation Army is urging Australians to support efforts to help farmers in the country’s east facing the worst drought in more than 100 years.
The organisation has deployed rural chaplains and other personnel to drought-affected areas, visiting farmers and rural communities and providing assistance including food hampers, helping with bill payments and other expenses, carrying out farm and household jobs and giving emotional support.
Rusty Lawson, a rural chaplain currently travelling in north-west New South Wales, said in a statement it was hard to comprehend the circumstances many farmers are facing.
“It’s only when you see the tears that you get real a sense of how broken and hopeless the situation has become,” he said. “We are seeing farmers going without their medication to pay for the needs of their livestock. Many are starting to seriously wonder what the future holds for them.”
Fellow chaplain Dianne Lawson, who is travelling with Rusty, said while farmers have been “crying out for a long time”, they were now finally seeing some momentum and it was lifting their spirits.
“But we need more resources to give them the practical support they need to get them back on their feet,” she said.
In a letter to The Salvation Army, one farmer who has been assisted by the two chaplains said that while he did not like having to ask for assistance, “for the first time in 25 years of farming, I felt like it was time to reach out and allow someone else to help us out”.
“It took a lot for me emotionally to ask for help, but I finally figured I was a farmer, so maybe it is OK to ask. The overwhelming thoughtfulness has been a God-send during this tough time.”
To support The Salvation Army’s work with farmers and communities affected by the drought, please visit salvos.org.au/ruralsupport or call 13 SALVOS (13 72 58).