A wonderful story of hope. Maree Orr [pictured] and her family started a new life in outback Australia just 3 years ago. Already Maree is is making a great contribution to rural Australia with her role in Selling People where she finds people jobs in rural Australia and helps rural employers find staff. Here in her own words is the Orr families story.
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We came from a Mango & sugarcane property from the Mpumalanga region in South Africa – right next to the Kruger National Park.
We applied for a position in Charleville QLD in Nov 05 and were offered the position right away.
On the 15 March 06 we embarked on our new adventure – thankful & grateful to leave our awful, unsecured old life behind!!
The 17 March 06 saw or arrival in Charleville Australia, to be greeted by our new employer & co-workers at Charleville airport
Under very difficult circumstances we completely renovated the dilapidated accommodation on the farm (Cattle & Sheep Property)
Our adventure was in full swing – working 14 hour days (Eric my husband of 22 years) – Getting rained in for weeks at a time, getting bogged, surviving sand storms that came rolling towards us like tidal waves, undrinkable dam water, dam bust right in front of our house – this was all taken in good humour and everyone adjusted according.
The best of it all was that we were safe, no one will try & kill us at night, no burglar bars & security doors, no armed response & no security guard 24/7. WE CAN NOT HAVE HOPED FOR ANYTHING BETTER –
I took thousands of photos – we attended rodeos, stud bull sales, small town shows, root and UTE shows to name a few, we visited each & every small town around – all the war memorial because this is home and we felt like Australians already.
The people in Charleville was awesome – embracing us & celebrated us – Bryan & Brendan our twin boys (now 16yrs old) did very well from the word go.
I worked 3 different jobs a week – at the state primary school as teacher aide, at the stud cattle property next to our farm Gowrie Pastoral Co doing office work – what awesome, warm people & at a earth moving firm also doing the books – catching the school bus with the twins every day 45km – 22km was bad dirt road which we drove with our old Hilux which we called Rufflux to get to the bitumen road and the rest with the school bus
Our other son, Jon-Erik joined us in Nov 06 from a working holiday in the UK. He is 21 years old. He worked in Charleville completing his traineeship in IT Oct 08. He joined us in Bundaberg in Nov 08 & is still working for D2K Information Technologies. They transferred him to Gladstone to man their office there & he started there today.
After Charleville we continued our adventure to Stanthorpe QLD both of us working at a wine Estate, Eric as farm manager & me at cellar door and administration. Eric learned how to make wine & I learned how to sell the wine & the yummiest gourmet cheeses – what a excellent experience
After Stanthorpe our adventure took us to Dalby QLD. Eric as workshop foreman/farmer on a grain & cotton property. I worked at the largest in Australia (I think) feedlot Mort & Co Grassdale Feedlot – what a excellent environment. The twins also started working there on weekends & school holidays – they are real farm boys – outside boys and enjoyed it so much.
Eric’s longing to get back to tree crops brought us to Bundaberg. He is now managing a avocado farm for Lachlan & Annaleise Donovan. He is having the time of his life. Lachlan & Annaleise are awesome. They are so happy to have him and he can not think of anywhere else he would rather be.
I am working from home for Rick Skelly at Selling People. I am doing what I wanted to do for a very very long time – working for the farming community because they are the backbone to every country.
At Selling People I help people who want to find rural jobs and rural businesses find people who want rural jobs. It is very satisfying helping people and businesses owners with the most important thing in all rural communities – jobs.
A very important date & happening was our Citizenship Ceremony in Jun 2008. We loaded everyone in the car & took the 9 hour drive back to Charleville where the Mayor Mark O’Brien did our Citizenship Ceremony with all our wonderful friends of Charleville present. That was very special!!
Yesterday March 17th is a very special day for us – we have been in Australia for three years and we will celebrate this awesome new life.
We have also purchased two spots on the Immigration Bridge in Canberra for our names and date of arrival – for our family to always celebrate & remember us who brought them to this wonderful place where we are safe & free and which we call home!
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Click on Photo to see the Employment services that Maree and Selling People offer. Selling People is an Agmates Business Supporter
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