We've all heard of rain dances, but have you ever heard of the Raindrop Project?
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It's an idea that stemmed from the Royal Agricultural Society (RAS) of New South Wales that attempts to make a difference for those affected by the relentless drought.
Groups all across New South Wales are knitting or crocheting raindrops in all shades of blue, including the CWA Mudgee Evening Branch, in hopes of raising much needed funds.
Each raindrop, approximately nine centimetres in diameter, will be sold for a gold coin donation at the Sydney Royal Easter Show and then placed into the RAS rainwater tank.
"The Raindrop Project is a way for people to not only get involved in the Easter Show, but also allow for people to donate to drought affected areas in New South Wales," General Manager of Agriculture at the Sydney Royal Easter Show, Murray Wilton said.
"It's a really good community spirited project that anyone can be a part of. It doesn't matter how old you are, you can contribute to assisting people that have been affected by the drought.
"All proceeds are going to go to some of the worst drought affected areas across the state."
Last year, RAS held a similar project for poppies in order to pay tribute to the ANZACS and received tens of thousands of hand made entries, and there are hopes for similar numbers this time round.
"If we are able to get similar types of numbers and are able to sell them, we will be able to raise a significant amount of money, and that will form part of the fundraising efforts that we're going to undertake during the Easter Show to put back into regional and rural towns during that recovery process," Wilton said.
"Assisting people in regional and rural towns, we see as part of our future of agriculture.
I know it sounds very simplistic but we all need to eat, farmers produce the food on our table and the clothes on our back, we need to support people in tough times.
- General Manager of Agriculture at the Sydney Royal Easter Show, Murray Wilton
"Through our Community Futures Grants, we will be able to identify projects that need funding and when people donate, they will know exactly where their money is going."
CWA Mudgee Evening Branch secretary Barbara Gow said there's no question that members of the community should seek to assist those struggling, hence the group's involvement in the project.
"We need to support our farmers and the allied industries otherwise our food chain will cease to exist, small communities will die and more people will be without an income, and now some of these farmers have also been impacted by the bushfires," she said.
"It's very important to help communities stay viable, to support organizations like CWA who have been giving out drought relief from donated money, Blaze Aid, Red Cross and others, and help those people who have lost homes and infrastructure to rebuild their lives and to continue to support those affected by the drought.
This rain is great, however we need a lot more before the drought is broken and even then it will be a couple of years before we can ever say that farmers' lives are getting back to normal.
- CWA Mudgee Evening Branch secretary, Barbara Gow
Raindrops can be taken to the RAS or brought a long to the Easter Show or dropped in to the Mudgee Library.