Magowra Station, Qld Gulf
“At home.”
Now, here’s a ringer to admire! Its Sheena Skinner’s third season at Magowra; She’s bright, vocal, and direct, and at 40+ years she wishes she’d begun working in the industry 20 years ago.
As a wiley youngster living in Penrith, Sydney, she grew up in a culture of drugs and the associated hardships. “I’ve been around bikies all my life.” Her love for horses began in those tough years; wagging school to be with horses, and often causing havoc at a nearby knackery by sneaking in and letting the horses go.
To get away from the life she was living in Sydney, she gradually made her way north, and has ended up at Magowra where she’s found that “…….everything I want is in this job. You wouldn’t ask for better…… it’s hard, and it’s a challenge doing a blokes’ job, but I’m getting paid for learning, and for the experience with horses and cattle.”
Most stock camps consist of 5 to 10 predominately young ringers, and Sheena enjoys working and socialising with them in spite of the age difference. She fondly refers to them as ‘the kids’,and they help to keep her feeling young! Since making the decision to move from Sydney to the bush, Sheena has discovered a new and different world. “Decency is a word that now has real meaning in my life.”
Her own horse ‘Macca’ is at the top of her priority list; in reality a dream come true for this unique station woman. “I love horses’, love Magowra, love the country. I enjoy the people up here. I feel at home.”