Face of the show

By Miranda Luby
CHRISTINE Young has been named the Senior Rural Ambassador for this year’s Centenary Pakenham Show.
The local Sunday School teacher won the opportunity to represent the community at the show’s 100th birthday on Saturday 19 March.
The daughter of a local dairy farmer, Ms Young has always loved the rural lifestyle.
“It was never a matter of trying to become involved, it has just always been a part of my life,” she said.
She grew up on her dad’s farm in Officer South and loved helping out by driving the tractor and stacking the hay bales.
Her family recently suffered along with the rest of the community during the February floods.
“Looking out our back window, all you could see was a seascape with floating hay bales,” she said.
The farm was passed down from Ms Young’s grandfather who bought the land back in the 1930s to support his passion for horses.
Her dad, David is the president of the local branch of the Victorian Farmers Federation and is an advocate for farmers and rural issues on a council level.
Ms Young was born community-minded. Growing up, she remembers hating the amount of rubbish that sometimes built up on her street.
‘I said to myself, as soon as I’m 18 I’m going to register as a supervisor for Clean Up Australia Day and clean up my road,’ she said.
For the past eight years, Ms Young has been heavily involved with the community through work and charity.
She works at two kindergarten schools in Pakenham and teaches Sunday school at St James’s Anglican Church.
She is also president of the Yakkerboo art show and has been helping out at their stand at the Pakenham Show for almost a decade.
With fond memories of going as a child, Ms Young loves the Pakenham show and has always wanted to become more involved.
“A few years ago I even made a whole lot of apricot jam and entered the competition,” she said.
“I won a prize but I think there were only three people in my section.”
Ms Young said it came as a huge surprise to be named the Senior Rural Ambassador for the show and she was honoured.
“It was exciting that I was even nominated let alone named as the Ambassador,” she said.
After the Pakenham Show, Mr Young will compete in the regional final and if successful will go on to the Royal Melbourne Show. The Victorian winner then competes at the national finals.
The aim of the award is to highlight the talent, creativity and ingenuity of young rural Victorians and to encourage and reward enthusiastic, skillful and industrious young people living, or having an involvement, in rural environments.
Entrants are judged on several areas including community involvement, general and rural knowledge and personality.
Ms Young said she would certainly be surprised if she could make it to the Royal Melbourne Show.
“It would be amazing considering that a week ago I didn’t even know I was nominated,” she said.