Cotton Capital sparkles as host of Zone 4 final

The Cotton Capital hosted the Zone 4 final of the Sydney Royal AgShows NSW Young Woman competition at the weekend.

The Wee Waa Show Society held a spectacular evening event on Saturday, inside the showground’s impressive new pavilion.

There was a stellar line-up of talented entrants from the region, and the winners on the night were Walgett’s Elizabeth Weber and Emma Bailey from Tamworth who will represent Zone 4 at the Sydney Royal Easter Show.

“I am stoked and feel honoured to have this opportunity,” Lizzy Weber told The Courier.

“It’s been an amazing experience and I would definitely recommend it.

“I’m not usually one to put myself out there but it’s definitely been a very rewarding experience – it’s been unreal.”

The 23-year-old is a graduate agronomist with Cotton Grower Services in Wee Waa and is currently living at Spring Plains.

“I’ve been involved in the Wee Waa community for about six months or so now and it’s been great to be part of the community here as well as Walgett.”

Both winners praised their fellow entrants and said they’d made some wonderful friendships through the program.

Formerly known as the 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.

All 16 entrants impressed judges and attendees on the weekend, and all proved to be amazing rural ambassadors as they displayed their dedication to community service and a desire to improve bush services.

The young women also spoke about their diverse occupations: from a journalist to a mining administrator, a speech pathologist, and a station hand.

Their differing roles reflecting the variety of career paths pursued by young women achieving great success while living in regional areas.

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.

Iconic jewellery designer Jan Logan was the guest speaker on Saturday night, and she dazzled the crowd with her warm nature, elegant style, and inspirational success story.

“Thank you very much for inviting me to be your guest speaker,” said Mrs Logan.

“I have always been proud to say I am from Narrabri, North Western NSW.

“My life on the land has always been of great value to me.”

The Courier will feature a full copy of Mrs Logan’s brilliant speech in a future edition.

She spoke about her remarkable life as the daughter of a farmer and her country childhood.

Mrs Logan’s parents were Molly and Os Gett.

“My brother Alex was 7 years older, I remember he found me useful to clean his white cricket boots.

“My sister Peg was five years older; she was like a best friend who took me down to our laundry and cut me a fringe and talked my mother into letting me wear lipstick and silk stockings.

“My brother Mal was seven years younger, he was a mid-life crisis baby and a shock to my mother whose curly dark hair went straight,” she said.

“I spent most of my time dressing up in whatever I could find in my mother’s cupboard.

“I was always rummaging through her clothes and hats; she would call out to me ‘Are you in mischief Jan?’

“After a long silence I replied, ‘I am out of it now’.

“I even resorted to dressing up Mal when he was old enough, he turned into a heavyset rugby player, I did not have any cross-dressing influences on him.

“It was evident early on that my interest was in adornment.”

Mrs Logan went on to speak about how her mother’s interest in fashion influenced her career, her time at boarding school in Sydney and meeting her husband, John.

“I spent some time living in Potts Point working as a part time secretary, this work did not suit me at all!

“I met my husband at age 16 on a tram in North Sydney on a rare excursion to see The Merchant of Venice.

“John was also from Narrabri so the romance blossomed and I was married at age 20.

“We lived on a property out of town and had three sons, Michael, Andrew and Angus.

“We had a happy time bringing them up in such a free and open space.

“My latent desire to do something for myself was surfacing in my mid-40s, Angus, our youngest had gone to boarding school when I responded to an advertisement in the North Western Courier for a promotions officer for the Narrabri Chamber of Commerce – I was duly appointed and was paid the grand sum of $1000 per annum.

“During this time I was continually in the president’s office who happened to be the town’s main jeweller, I was constantly playing with the jewellery and suggesting ideas, he offered me a 20 per cent shareholding in the business. I took out a personal loan with the ANZ Bank and this was my serendipitous start in the jewellery industry.”

At the age of 50, Mrs Logan launched her glamorous fashion brand and exquisite store in Double Bay, in Sydney.

“I took these small premises and opened my first shop in October 1989.

“I timed it to coincide with a window dressing competition called Up and Running in Double Bay based on the Spring Racing Carnival.

“I had an assistant called Louise Herron who luckily joined us to help build up the business.

“She was very creative and between us we set up the window display and won second prize which attracted a lot of attention and questions about ‘who is this person?’

“I overheard one comment at the time ‘oh she is some little girl from the country, she’ll last about three weeks.’

Of course, Mrs Logan showed the cynics and decades later her brand and timeless jewel creations are still highly regarded, and have even been worn and adored by celebrities such as Naomi Watts, Jennifer Lopaz, Taylor Swift and Kate Bosworth.

“I started this business in 1989 when I was 50 years old and we celebrate our 33rd anniversary in October 2022,” said Mrs Logan.

“I guess my message to women out there is that it is never too late.”

Mrs Logan’s speech was a highlight of the evening, which started with Gamilaraay woman Helen Wenner delivering the Acknowledgement to Country and Anna Baird singing the national anthem beautifully.

Other speakers included Wee Waa Show Society president Gary Hibbens, and former Showgirl and Group 14 Next Gen. delegate Bec Cope.

Bush Wanderlust podcasters Katie Watson and Ali Smith were MCs, and former Showgirls and coordinators Georgie Haire and Bronte Marshall did a fantastic job of interviewing the entrants on stage.

The judges were Agricultural Societies Council of NSW president Tim Capp, ASC company secretary David Williams OAM and The Land newspaper’s Samantha Townsend who had to make some very tough decisions on the night. All speakers acknowledged the wonderful work of the Wee Waa Show Society and volunteers, who helped to showcase the region and make the weekend such a triumph.

A full copy of Jan Logan’s speech and more photos will feature in a future edition.