Community events are a lifeline for rural and regional towns across Australia, but more organisers are making the 'heartbreaking' decision to cancel them.
Community events in rural towns are struggling to recruit volunteers, leading to more being cancelled.
For 38-year-old Nicky Poole, the Theodore Show was something she looked forward to every year in her hometown 560 kilometres north-west of Brisbane.The show is a big part of the local community."We haven't managed to get a committee together, it's really, really disappointing," said Ms Poole, who has been involved in the committee for the last 12 years.
"With Scouts not operating, there is no option for extracurricular activities ," she said.The Scouts group is the only outdoors extracurricular activity for local kids.In its 10-year strategic plan released in 2023, Scouts Australia acknowledged its high volunteer-driven model was its "greatest vulnerability", due to volunteers being "less willing to make the intense and sustained time commitment required to be an adult in Scouting".
In summer, the town of 3,000 is quieter than usual as businesses operate on limited hours and people escape the heat.The Longreach street party in 2015.But treasurer Diane Harrison said the club had to make the heart-wrenching decision to cancel this year's event."People just aren't joining service clubs like they used to.
Country Shows Community Events Volunteer Shortage Scouts Lions Club Volunteer Theodore Show Theodore Show Cancelled Scouts Australia Volunteering Australia Mark Pearce Longreach Lions Club Street Party Service Clubs
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