Darcy meets the Back Packers

Hi,  Darcy again,

 You can see me here thinking instructions to Julie as she converses with the Backpackers at the special BBQ held for them by the Combined Churches of Hillston. I was dying to get over there but some people are just not sure of dogs (Sigh!) 

Father Murray had the idea of a get together before the back packers left to wish them well from the Hillston churches and community. Then,as he said ,"Jenny made it happen!"* Several people from the local churches,including Julie and I joined in.(Yeah, I know,I'm a dog.)

You can see Julie below in the shirt matching my bag (I'm careful about these things!) After her stint buttering the bread, she welcomed the opportunity to spend time with these visitors from overseas who come to Hillston each year to pick the produce,mostly cherries. It had been a hard season for them as they came to the job as newbies and it takes a while for them to learn the skills to pick enough to make a good wage.

Some were sunburnt and tired;others, relishing the idea of continuing work,especially as their skills improved.

Back packers from UK and Germany with Julie

Many commented they felt very special to be served this Aussie BBQ.Such an event shows what we can do to make people welcome where we live.( However,we forgot the vegetarians and had to race home to get food from the fridge so they weren't stuck having bread and sauce for dinner!)
In the ice cream queue it was amusing to see twenty-somethings leaning forward to count to make sure they would not miss out on an ice cream cone and sprinkles.

 In all we counted over a 100 people from 11 different countries,which was a nice change for me as I am usually the only multi-cultural dog, being of French origin with previous Chinese owners.(I speak Cantonese you know and now English too!)

Just being there we had the feeling we were all friends and we deepened friendships with back packers we had met in town or at church.They now felt like locals.We had no idea who the 3 guys were in the photo below but they were instant friends and all part of the fun!

Everyone loves a photo.We had no idea who the 3 guys in the front were!

We also had the pleasure of some of the back packers coming to church on Sunday.Some have been coming for weeks and two new guys turned up last week. I met them at morning tea when Julie let me in from next door. (I like them cos they love dogs!)

* You met Jenny previously in the Open Garden blog.