Rural Woman on a mission

A group of young vibrant ladies from Tasman Rural Women have set themselves on an ambitious mission of raising fifty thousand dollars, before the end of the year. The mission, titled ‘Play for Keeps’, is aimed at supporting Nelson and Tasman families who are struggling to afford school sports fees, shoes and associated sport costs.

“We have set the target high, and we may not make it, but we will achieve more aiming for fifty as opposed to ten thousand.” Explains Liza Vass, a Rural Women committee member for Tasman Rural Women.

Liza, along with her hubby and 7-month-old son, live south of Wakefield and Liza, who has always worked in primary industries related roles, has a genuine passion for bringing women from rural communities together.

“I’m excited about the opportunities ahead to bring together like-minded women and work as a team to help families that are affected by the current cost of living crisis,” Liza says. “It’s also a great way for me to connect with other women and have a break from being at home with our baby.”

Recently Liza, along with Tasman Rural Women co-founders Anna Thomas and Emma Higgins, hosted a successful and well received ladies’ long lunch at Harvest Kitchen. The objective of the event was to get ladies networking and introduce them to the Tasman Rural Women Play for Keeps mission ahead of aiming to raise to fifty thousand dollars for a good cause. “The long lunch was a fabulous success,” says Liza “We had around twenty-five women attend, and not only did we introduce our new mission, but we also connected women together highlight the great work that the Rural Women organisation does.”

Rural Women has become a credible and respected voice on health services, education, environment and social issues in the rural sector.  The group often canvasses the opinions of its members, and the wider rural community, on issues in order to make regular submissions on education, social, health, safety and land concerns affecting rural people and the regions they live in.

Liza says that the group is planning to host some more events this year, including a kitchen trail in November which will raise money for the group’s goal as well as offer an opportunity to spend some time with other women involved in the primary industries.  A lot of people associate Rural Women with tea and scones, “laughs Liza “But we are so much more than that. Our group is full of young mums and business owners. We encourage women to escape off the farm, step away from the business, close the laptop, forget the housework and just connect with other awesome ladies.