ORDINARILY when a small town like Nundle circles a petition, it’s a cry for change, but there’s nothing ordinary about the town’s latest appeal.
The small New England town’s most-recent rally has received significant traction in the community because there’s a message Nundle won’t have unheard.
But this petition has twist.
It’s not seeking to condemn an ordinary lot the town has been dealt.
Nundle is celebrating an ordinary person with an ordinary job, doing apparently extraordinary work.
Boasting close to 100 signatures, the Nundle petition is short thank-you note to one of the post office’s staffers.
“Dear Jodi, the people of Nundle, Hanging Rock and surrounds would like to thank you, and to let you know that we all appreciate the things that you do to make our lives so much easier and happier,” the letter reads.
“Its [sic] people like you that are the backbone of Australia.
“As a community we are proud to call you ours.
“We wish you all the best and we thank you.”
Nundle resident Janelle Brown didn’t start the petition, but she said the young post office worker “breathed new life” into the town.
There’s no one particular thing she’s done and she not planning on leaving the gig any time soon either, making the petition more of an endorsement of her efforts above anything else.
Ms Brown said Jodi daily, discrete efforts earned her a level of distinction in the town.
Whether it’s taking mail outside to the elderly in their mobility scooters, helping people with invoices and just being generally keen to help, the community thinks she goes above and beyond.
Another Nundle man, who wished to remain anonymous, helped circulate the petition and said “it’s more than a post office”.
“It’s basically the service she provides mainly to the older people in the community,” he said.
“They come in and they can’t see things properly, so she fills things out for them.
“One bloke pulls up in his gopher and yells out, ‘are you there Jodi?’ and she goes out and does his banking and everything for him from the footpath.
“It’s just little thing she does constantly, its just constant.”
Nundle locals are invited to add their signatures to the petition which is currently at the gym.
Jacob McArthur
Jacob McArthur is opinions editor for The Canberra Times and Australian Community Media. As part of the Canberra Times' production team, he helps the people of Canberra and beyond get the stories they need, when they need them across a range of platforms, while helping maintain a high editorial standard. Before moving to Canberra in 2020, he started with Australian Community Media in 2015 as a journalist for The Northern Daily Leader in Tamworth where he kept a close eye on Tamworth Regional Council. Jacob was also the co-host of ACM's Water Pressure podcast where he and Jamieson Murphy took a deep dive on issues and key decisions arising during one of the region's worst droughts on record.
Jacob McArthur is opinions editor for The Canberra Times and Australian Community Media. As part of the Canberra Times' production team, he helps the people of Canberra and beyond get the stories they need, when they need them across a range of platforms, while helping maintain a high editorial standard. Before moving to Canberra in 2020, he started with Australian Community Media in 2015 as a journalist for The Northern Daily Leader in Tamworth where he kept a close eye on Tamworth Regional Council. Jacob was also the co-host of ACM's Water Pressure podcast where he and Jamieson Murphy took a deep dive on issues and key decisions arising during one of the region's worst droughts on record.
