With regional tourism on the rise, Donald, along with a lot of other rural communities, is finally getting its time in the proverbial spotlight. And the Donald 2000 committee is determined to shine that spotlight on something that cannot be missed.
Donald has two main icons to its name – the Bullock’s Head, and the kookaburra – however, only one of them has a physical presence within the town. Donald 2000 aims to rectify that, in the form of a massive, 4.5-metre-tall sculpture of a kookaburra made out of recycled metals.
The installation of this big kookaburra will not only promote tourism, as it would certainly make Donald a destination on the tourist map, but also act as a symbol of pride for its community values.
Freedom and Laughter
A fierce and joyous bird, the kookaburra evokes thoughts of freedom and laughter, and a community in which it has chosen to perch must be one worthy of sharing its values.
A “go-ahead town with a great community feel,” in the words of Jodie Hollis, Donald is full of life and laughter, and with that constant country resilience behind it, the kookaburra could not be a better symbol for the town.
“The popularity of this bird made it the perfect choice for a sculpture many people could resonate with,” said Jodie’s fellow Donald 2000 member, John McConville.
The contracted artist, Chris Fussell, has created many kookaburra sculptures over the years, but this will be his first project without his wife by his side. He and his wife worked side-by-side with their art for over 50 years, until she succumbed to cancer last year, and Chris’s understanding of his art died with her. He’s had to spend time relearning his own creative process, with the absence of a part that had previously been so central to it. As such, when Jodie Hollis initially approached him, he said “no” to undertaking another project. But, two weeks later, Jodie got a text saying he might have one more kookaburra in him.
“It was the positivity – Jodie and John were just so enthusiastic, so I just thought, ‘Aw, maybe I can do this’. It makes it so easy to work with someone who is so passionate.”
Bird of Steel
Without even knowing the town, as he is based in Newcastle, Chris has fallen in love with the Donald community. This swan song symbol will stand not only as love for the past, but as hope for the future, for both Chris and Donald alike. With the bird to be made from steel, the feathers all being cut from old car bonnets, and the claws to be made from horseshoes, the symbolism of resilience in the face of hardship, as well as breathing new life into old things, is hard to ignore.
And, of course, birds of a feather must flock together, so this sculpture will stand outside the new Kooka’s Country Cookies facility, with which it shares a symbol, and will be available to the public 24/7.
A project such as this is not cost-free, though, and a lot of (also costly) behind-the-scenes planning is involved in cementing this dream in reality. As such, the Donald 2000 committee is calling for its own birds of a feather to flock together as a community and support this beautiful town they call home. While $50,000 might seem like a lofty goal, the aim is to have it be returned tenfold, in terms of local business and tourism.
This goal would allow all expenses to be covered in their entireties, not only including the $25,000 for the sculpture itself, but also including engineering computations, planning and building compliance certificates, a big stand of concrete in the shape of a Murray River red gum stump as a perch, and the fibreglass reinforcing.
The Donald 2000 committee is promoting the project with a contribution of $2,500.
There will be a running total in the paper of donations, as well as a tally. It is expected that this project will take one year to complete.
After 15 years since his last kookaburra, Chris has dusted off the tools of his trade for one more creation, so Donald 2000 calls for its own community members to dust off their coins and chip in where they can.
With regional tourism on the rise in recent years, Donald needs something that not only entices people to stop and spend time in the town, but that also reflects the heart of the community.
So, as Jodie Hollis says, “For anyone who is passionate about Donald, past, present and future, we are asking for you to lend your support to help bring this grand dream to fruition.”
Donald 2000’s GoFundMe page is up and running now: https://www.gofundme.com/f/tourist-attraction-the-big-kookaburra
This article appeared in The Buloke Times, 26 May 2023.
