Growing up a city girl in Christchurch with an accountant mother and a nurse father, farming might not have seemed the obvious career choice for Abbey White.
In fact, Abbey admits it was "completely off the beaten track". But she did know she did not want to spend her life in an office. "That wasn’t for me, I had to be outside, hands-on doing practical."’
As she approached the end of secondary school and unsure what to do, a careers adviser suggested Telford, as she was a keen equestrienne.
So she went on a taster camp and enjoyed it so much that she said "sign me up" to her mother as soon as she returned.
Initially studying equine, she decided that was not what she wanted to do as a career so she completed a certificate in agriculture and, as a result, scored her first farming job.
After four years on a farm near Clinton, which she loved, it was time to go and experience a different farm and get a different perspective.
So she is now on another Clutha sheep and beef farm, a sector she was always more inclined towards.
The attraction was being outdoors and doing something different every day. While winter was a little more repetitive, the farms she had been on had done a lot of their own tractor work and fencing and so she had picked up quite a few skills.
"I’m really hands-on and a bit of a perfectionist."
She has four dogs, including her "No1" dog Jason or J that she had at Telford and she and her team "get the job done, nothing flash".
Abbey is secretary of Clinton Young Farmers Club and this year also stepped up to vice-chairwoman. The club was working on getting more members, it recently had its annual quiz raising money for the Cancer Society. It was a good way to get off farm and socialise with like-minded people, and also do various trips away and fundraising.
She entered the Show Queen competition at the South Otago A & P Show — "probably one of the most terrifying things I’ve done in my life" — she laughed, but one she was glad to do, and she recently finished her third season playing rugby for Albion in Gore.
Ideally Abbey would like to end up with a stock manager position but, before then, she was keen to travel to Europe where she had family connections, and see the agricultural sector over there.
So what is her advice to other young urban folk who might be keen to give rural life a go?
"Just get out there and do it. A lot of people think what I thought, to get into farming you had to be born into it.
"A lot of bosses I have spoken to are not necessarily looking for people that know it all. They want people with the right attitude and willing to learn, that’s more important to them."
"It’s a pretty awesome job ... to be honest, I wouldn’t change it for the world."
While Abbey had not really stayed in contact with school-mates, she kept in touch with those she forged friendships with at Telford, saying they had the same interests.
And her family remained totally supportive of her chosen career, even if they would like her to move closer to home. However, her father did rub it in her face she had changed rugby allegiances from the Crusaders to the Highlanders.
— Sally Rae
