Cobar Mobile Children’s Services (CMCS) will once again be able to offer their services to bush kids aged between four and 12 years old.
A donation of $8,000 this week from the Country Women’s Association (CWA) Cobar branch to CMCS, who recently lost some of their funding, will mean they will be able to reinstate the service.
The funding will however only help for a couple of months until such time continued funding for the service can be sourced.
Cobar CWA president Colleen Boucher said when they heard the funding for CMCS bush unit had been cut, they invited CMCS’s Bridget Brookman to go along to one of their meetings to speak to members.
“We asked Bridget to give a presentation on which properties they went to, what programs they delivered and how much it cost to keep the unit on the road,” Mrs Boucher said.
“This proved to be a very emotional time for many at the meeting because some of our younger members are families that would no longer have this service delivered while some of the older members had raised children in the bush and understood the isolation.”
Mrs Boucher said after hearing the information, members unanimously voted to support the CMCS with a donation of $8,000.
“Our branch was given a donation from a city group, the Modified Hilux N70 Group, for drought relief and it was left to the branch to decide which area to distribute the money to,” Mrs Boucher said.
“This cause fits all of our criteria.
“CWA was raised in the beginning to support country women, through country women, by country women.
“This will ensure that children in the bush receive the same advantages as those who live in the town,” she said.
“These children are our future and should not be disadvantaged by funding cuts, especially in the current severe drought climate.
“Farmers already have enough to deal with.”
Mrs Boucher said the Cobar CWA branch will be looking to donate further drought funding to purchase food and fuel vouchers for the next ‘Night for Our Farmers’ event.
