Wee Waa to host NSW Young Woman of the Year Zone 4 finals

The Wee Waa Show Society is hosting the Zone 4 finals of The Sydney Royal Ag Shows NSW Young Woman of the Year event, this Saturday.

Formerly known as the Miss Showgirl competition, the popular youth development program has undergone a name change this year to better reflect the spirit of the event in honouring young rural women and to ensure the relevance of the competition well into the future.

“As we celebrate 60 years in 2022, a more relevant title will allow the program to remain an important platform that supports young women for 60 years to come,” said Susan Wakeford, RAS showgirl councillor and past Showgirl.

Wee Waa Show Society president Gary Hibbens said the cotton capital was a fantastic location to host the Zone 4 finals, and the presence of guest speaker Jan Logan was sure to be one of the evening’s highlights.

Readers would be familiar with Jan Logan’s success story, growing up and raising a family in the Narrabri region and later becoming an iconic luxury jewellery designer.

“As a committee, we are extremely excited to hold this function,” said Mr Hibbens.

“We’re a central location for the zone, and for friends and family of entrants to attend.”

Mr Hibbens said the evening would be a great opportunity for the community to engage with the next generation of young rural women.

“We have some strong representatives from the Namoi Valley, from Gunnedah right through to Walgett.

“It’s an exciting time for our region and its young female achievers.

“Georgia is a great representative for Wee Waa, and I believe she has what it takes to go to Sydney and put Wee Waa on the map again.”

Wee Waa’s Young Woman of the Year Georgia Dickinson said it’s been an “exciting experience” to be involved in the program so far.

At a recent workshop, Georgia said the young women were able to network and chat to other like-minded women, who have now become friends.

“I’ve been learning a lot,” she said.

“It’s such an honour to represent the show society, especially because I’ve been involved for so long.

“It’s also very humbling because the finals are being hosted in Wee Waa, and this is where I was raised.

“It’s a great town with so much history, but the community is the backbone of the town – there’s great people here.”

Georgia is currently working at C&W Financial Services and is also studying a Bachelor of Business.

She strongly believes in teaching younger generations about the importance of agriculture and thinks it’s essential to make sure small communities like Wee Waa continue to survive and thrive.

Georgia is also committed to several community endeavours, assisting with pony club events and polocrosse carnivals as well as being a member of the Wee Waa Show Society.

Gemma Ferguson is Narrabri’s Young Woman of the Year, and readers would be familiar with her excellent work as a journalist.

Gemma previously worked at The Courier, returning to her hometown to kick start her career before recently taking up the opportunity to work for a digital masthead in Port Macquarie.

She has been a representative on the Narrabri Shire Youth Council and has also given her time to community events and organisations, such as the Narrabri Show Society.

Gemma said she was thrilled to be taking “this next step in the Showgirl experience” and feels very proud and honoured to be representing Narrabri.

“Not only am I keen to demonstrate what Narrabri is all about at the zone level, but I’m excited for the opportunity to develop further personally,” said Gemma.

“The weekend workshop we completed in the lead up to this event was such a great experience, with plenty of new skills learnt and new friends made.

“I’m also really looking forward to seeing all my fellow showgirls again.

“Representing my hometown, in the very same local government area, is just the cherry on top.

“I can’t wait to see the evening Wee Waa Show Society puts on because I know there’s some very dedicated locals working hard behind the scenes there.”

On Saturday, sixteen young women, from Armidale to Walgett, will represent their country towns at the Zone 4 finals in Wee Waa.

The competition aims to foster and find young female ambassadors for rural Australia.

More than 500 young women enter the competition every year and they are judged on their interest and knowledge about rural Australia, as well as presentation, confidence, ambition, and general knowledge.

Throughout the competition, entrants are asked about their involvement in the local community and national political issues that impact Australians, particularly those living in rural and regional areas.