He’s the Aussie TV star with a huge smile and a huge heart, as Grant Denyer is proving yet again.
The Gold Logie winner and his wife Cheryl have thrown themselves into supporting drought-stricken farms across the country after sharing a heartbreaking image of their 11-hectare farm in Bathurst. Labelling it “situation critical”, the TV host gave fans a glimpse of the dry and barren desert his patch of paradise has become due to one of the worst droughts on record.
“This is how dry it is at our place,” Grant, 40, said.
“My wife took this photo of our backyard and paddocks. So dry, kangaroos are drinking out of our dog bowl. We’re lucky we don’t rely on the farm for income but so many in regional Australia do. It’s so sad. In many places it’s the worst drought since records began.”
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Pleading with his followers to support Rural Aid, of which he and Chezzi are ambassadors, he added, “Some families are at breaking point, unable to afford food and with no choice but to shoot their stock so they don’t starve and suffer a slow death.
“Mental health issues have risen 70 per cent in our region and suicide by farmers is the most tragic consequence of such a drastic situation. Farmers harvest our food and the materials for the clothes on our back. Please think of them. We need them. They need us.”
“Farmers harvest our food and the materials for the clothes on our back. Please think of them. We need them. They need us,” pleads Grant.
The Long Paddock
“Neighbours have to walk stock down our roads, letting them roam and feed on whatever they can find,” says Chezzi, 38.
“Some have had to shoot their animals. It’s depressing. It feels dead. It looks dead. It’s horrible. Spare a moment’s thought for farmers who live off this great land of ours.”
The first three months of 2018 have been the driest for more than 30 years across the Central Tablelands and NSW, with 99.8 per cent of the state affected.
Many farmers are struggling to keep financially afloat as a result and have to fork out $10,000 a week to maintain livestock.
National Australia Bank chief Andrew Thorburn announced the bank won’t charge penalty interest if farmers fall behind due to drought.
But it’s often too little too late for the farmers.
“Many are battling this crippling drought. Trying to hold their heads high, for their families, for themselves, for their pride and memories, livelihood, their calling, their survival… that’s why we support @ruralaid [and] @buyable,” Chezzi wrote online last week.
In a bid to do their bit, Grant and Chezzi, with the help of performers such as Guy Sebastian, are hosting the Black Tie & Boots Ball for Rural Aid in Bathurst on August 11, to raise funds for farmers and improve the living stands of communities in rural Australia.
