Helping students keep going after devastating fires

As bushfires ravaged much of Australia’s east coast in late 2019, the Charles Sturt Foundation responded in the best way it could, establishing a Regional Impact Fund to provide vital support and alleviate the financial burden on fire-affected students.

Georgia’s world changed overnight

Georgia Terlich was one of six students to receive a Charles Sturt Bushfire Scholarship worth $5,000.

Georgia received the scholarship in 2020 while completing her Bachelor of Nursing in Bathurst. It was to be one of the hardest years of her life so far.

“I was 10 days into finally being 18, and excited about being an adult and enjoying all the things in life that comes with finding your place in the world, and all that great stuff they tell you about. But yeah, 10 days in and I lost everything that was my childhood and everything that I knew overnight.

“COVID hit and campuses closed, and we all had to go back home. With that I lost my employment, and also as a farm kid, I am not eligible for any government support, mainly because we own too much land and that’s considered an asset. So, when the fires happened, the land is income, but you lose the land, so there’s no income, but yet it’s still an asset.”

Georgia acknowledges that the scholarship provided a safety net in a time of great uncertainty.

“The Charles Sturt Bushfire Scholarship made a significant difference to start off my education, clearly financially. It allowed me to allocate certain expenses to all aspects of my learning, but to also have a safety net, which was so important at the time, not having that in the first place. To feel like I wasn’t a burden on the family. I needed that independence and to just focus.”

Callum vows to make an impact

Like Georgia, third-year accounting student Callum Wesley benefited from a Charles Sturt University Bushfire Scholarship, twice having to evacuate from the Mid North Coast bushfires and sleep in his car with his two dogs.

“At the time of the bushfires I was living at a property in Tinonee on the banks of the Manning River near Taree. The Hillville bushfire, only 12 kilometres from Tinonee, was one of the biggest fires in the state at the time, and it didn’t take long for it to spread.

“The entire bushland in Tinonee was burnt out, but thanks to the Rural Fire Service and the Fire and Rescue Squad all houses were saved. Unfortunately, in surrounding areas such as Rainbow Flat, Bobin, and Hillville many people lost their homes.”

Callum describes it as an emotionally draining time made especially difficult not knowing what was happening at home and trying to juggle the demands of “normal life”.

“When I evacuated, I had to sleep in my car with my two dogs, which wasn’t very comfortable. The roads to Tinonee kept opening and closing, and some days I couldn’t get to work.

“When I found out I’d received a scholarship, at first I couldn’t believe it. It has made a massive difference. I moved out of the Tinonee bushland where the fire occurred into Taree where I feel more protected. The scholarship allowed me to set up a study space and the new equipment makes me even more motivated to study, and I’m able to do so comfortably.

“The funds did not just buy material items, they inspired me to keep dreaming and achieving goals. I feel as though I owe something back to my scholarship donors and I believe that through striving and being the best student that I can possibly be, I will make an impact.”