The event was hosted by the Deniliquin Pastoral & Agricultural Society as a drought relief event.
Society treasurer Dawn Morris said she was amazed with the turn out on the day.
‘‘It was a really good day and lovely to see everyone come out and be together as a community,’’ she said.
‘‘We (the Show Society) wanted to give back to the farming community and to allow everyone to come together and talk about these issues. We wanted to show people that there is help if needed and many others are in the same situation so nobody has to go through any difficulties alone.’’
Mrs Morris said the event was free to local families thanks to a grant received by the society.
But she said such is the generosity of the district community, many could not leave without making a donation.
She said all money collected will be donated to BeyondBlue.
‘‘We possibly raised a couple of hundred dollars and every little bit helps not only our community but the surrounding families,’’ Mrs Morris said.
‘‘It was great to see everyone get involved and behind those who are struggling; I think we have a great family-like and supportive community.’’
Several organisations, clubs and businesses attended the day to give out information about their services.
‘‘We had the Men’s Shed, Centrelink, Wellways, Intereach, Lifeline, Rotary and more, which really enabled us to show people what was out there for them to access whether that’s for assistance or to join a club for the social aspect.’’
Special guest speakers on the day were Speak Up Campaign chair Shelley Scoullar and Member for Murray Austin Evans.
Attractions included a jumping castle, a vintage and veteran car display, music from Mark Ritchie and a bush poetry performance from Alex Allitt.
At the same time, the P&A Society members had a full canteen running, which was also free.
‘‘I would like to thank all the volunteers who helped out on the day; they played a vital role in making the event happen,’’ Mrs Morris said.
‘‘I would also like to thank everyone for coming along which was overall a wonderful day and we hope members of the drought effected community were able to enjoy it.’’
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