Australia is facing a national drought crisis. Sadly, it’s our farmers who are on the frontline and the disaster is shattering their livelihoods. As families struggle to make ends meet it’s not just the rivers that are running dry— the cost of battling through these dire conditions adds extra strain to an already critical situation. 

This week, one Aussie farming family received a welcome surprise when they discovered the Lott was giving them $10,000 as part of Channel 9’s Knock of Cash on The Today Show.

Fourth generation farmer, Stephen, has run a dairy farm in Wingham for the past seven years. He’s continued to show incredible resilience through tough times however, extended periods of drought and crippling milk prices have threatened to close the gates to his farm for good. 

“It’s been very hard,” Stephen said. 

“I’m a fourth-generation farmer and now my kids also know all the ins and outs. I do love my job but it’s certainly taken its toll on us.”

When Stephen met with Channel 9 to share his story, he had no idea it was going to come with a surprise from the Lott. 

“When they bunged the $10,000 cheque on me, I was completely dumbfounded. I was speechless,” he said.

“It’s come at a good time. It will keep us rolling on for a bit longer.

“Thank you. There’re heaps of people going through the same thing as us. Heaps of communities struggling. It might be a while yet before we see this really turn around.”

Last year, the Lott through Golden Casket donated $500,000 to the Queensland Government’s Queensland Drought Appeal. This was in addition to a separate donation of $500,000 by Golden Casket’s parent company, Tabcorp, to help drought-affected farmers across Queensland and New South Wales.

We are committed to giving back to the communities in which we operate and have partnered with Channel 9 to surprise more inspiring Aussie families over the coming weeks.

Stay tuned for more incredible stories from communities all over the country.