The last couple of weeks have seen country communities get pretty creative in coming up with new ways to help our farming communities, and Wagga has been no exception.
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Two Wagga restaurants – the Palm and Pawn and Bistro 73 – have now jumped aboard the ‘Parma for a Farmer’ initiative, and will be donating $1 from every chicken parmigiana sold in August to farmers struggling through drought.
Baillie Merlehan of the Palm and Pawn in North Wagga said it was an easy choice to join to the fundraiser after they first heard of it on Thursday.
“We started it on Friday, and since then we’ve had loads of people ring us up to ask if we’re doing it, and then they’ve asked to book a table straight away,” Ms Merlehan said.
“We’ve sold a lot of parmis since then, and we’ve also got donation tins in the bar and bistro if people want to give money to the Buy a Bale fundraiser.”
Owner of Bistro 73 Peter Hadkins said the fundraiser was a good reminder of the mateship underpinning Australia’s national identity.
“The way I look at it, it’s just mates helping mates – we’ve got to remember that we’re still a country town, and that’s what we’re all about,” Mr Hadkins said.
“We all want our farmers to survive, because if they don’t then meat prices go up, so my costs go up, and then I have to pass it on to my customers, so we all just need to help out and do our part.”
All the money raised during August’s Parma for a Farmer fundraiser will go to Buy a Bale, which has been helping farmers since September, 2013, and has already delivered more than 160,000 bales of hay to farmers across four states.
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