This article originally appeared on MurrayValleyStandard.com.au
Country shows are a symbol of hope, says a woman from Cowirra nominated for a young achiever award for her work with them.
Emmeline Vivian is the third member of her family to have served as a show society president, following her great-grandfather at Strathalbyn and father at Mannum, and motivated to keep the agricultural community events going.
“Even in a bad year you go there and you still have that support,” she said.
“My show family has adopted me … I’ve had an extra family.”
Her passion was to involve more young people in their local agricultural shows, she said.
“You don’t know how much you love something until you’re exposed to it, and not enough people are exposed to it,” she said.
“Not all kids have the same upbringing I did.”
As well as serving on the Mannum Agricultural Show committee, Ms Vivian chairs a committee which manages the town’s showground, is a delegate to the Agricultural Shows Society of South Australia, and led the organisation of a 2017 SA Next Generation boots and black tie ball which raised more than $7000 for youth in agriculture.
She has also volunteered for the Cancer Council SA since 2014 after serving as a youth ambassador for that organisation.
Outside her volunteer work, she is a business, leadership and financial planning student.
In nominating her for the award in the regional service category, her mum Robyn – also a Mannum Agricultural Society member – said she was “one of few young people leading the agricultural show movement into the direction we need to secure our future”.
The winners announced on May 16.