261: How city girl turned pilot & farmer Debbie Dowden has "seized life by the throat"
Debbie Dowden arrived in Australia by boat when she was just 3 years old. Her family were ‘10 pound poms’ in search of a sunnier life in Australia. Little did she know that life would see her raising 4 children 600kms from Perth in Outback Western Australia. Debbie was working as a theory instructor at a flight school when she decided that she actually wanted to fly the planes, not just teach people about them. It was here that she met her husband Ash- and she approached her relationship with Ash the same way she did with learning to fly, getting out of her comfort zone. As a young single mum at the time, all of Debbie’s family lived in Perth. But when she met Ash Dowden, the owner of Challa Station in the Southern Rangelands of WA, she knew she needed to go bush. And bush she went. She packed up her life, her daughter and quit her job and arrived at Challa with limited experience. Fast forward to 2025 and she’s now running it alongside her husband. This is her story. Our Autumn sponsor Telstra continues to support communities with free calls from public phones to all standard national and mobile numbers, plus free Wi-Fi at over 4,000 sites. These phones are vital in emergencies, natural disasters, or when your mobile is out of battery, credit, or reach - A true lifeline, especially in rural and regional areas. To learn more about Telstra Public Phones including a new initiative underway to heritage list three public phones, and how you can share your own payphone story - CLICK HEREWe are so excited to introduce Heritage 365 by our incredible partner, CABLE. This Woolmark-certified knitwear collection celebrates Australia’s iconic Merino wool with timeless pieces like cardigans, jumpers, singlets, beanies, and gloves—available year-round in Cable stores and online 365 days a year. To explore the new Heritage 365 collection CLICK HEREhttps://www.instagram.com/motherlandaustralia
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260: Ingrid Matthews is raising a sick child 700kms from a major hospital
Ingrid Matthews and her husband manage 4 beef cattle stations in Northwestern Queensland. They also have 4 kids, aged 12, 10, 7 and 6. But Ingrid and her youngest daughter Olivia have spent 6 weeks maximum at home over the last 15 months. Olivia is living with a chronic condition she was born with that impacts her stomach and her blood sugars. When she was just 8 days old she was rushed into surgery. And there were many more after that. These surgeries take place some 700kms away from their home and often see Ingrid away from her older children for weeks and months on end. When Olivia was 10 months old, Ingrid left for what she thought would be a 2 week stay in hospital. But they didn’t return for 10 months, and during that time she only saw her older kids 4 times. Now at 6 years old, Ingrid never knows when Olivia is going to need to go to hospital. During this interview Ingrid had to stop and check her blood sugars to make sure that they were stable enough. The mental load on Ingrid’s shoulders is huge but her strength shines through. Despite immense challenges, she somehow still manages to meet her family's needs. But, not always her own. This is her story.Thanks to our Autumn sponsor Telstra, cyber support is available to regional small businesses for free. Cyber Wardens is a cyber security program run by the Council of Small Business Organisations of Australia (COSBOA) with the support of Telstra. It helps regional small business owners and their teams learn how to protect themselves from cyber threats. To learn more about Telstra's work with the Cyber Warden's Program CLICK HERE. We are so excited to introduce Heritage 365 by our incredible partner, CABLE. This Woolmark-certified knitwear collection celebrates Australia’s iconic Merino wool with timeless pieces like cardigans, jumpers, singlets, beanies, and gloves—available year-round in Cable stores and online 365 days a year. To explore the new Heritage 365 collection CLICK HEREhttps://www.instagram.com/motherlandaustralia
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259: Into the wild- Dr Rebecca West is raising kids & savings animals in the desert
Dr Rebecca West grew up in England—far from red dirt, heatwaves, and the howls of wild animals echoing through desert nights. She never imagined that by 40, she’d be raising three young children on one of the most remote properties in New South Wales, 450 kilometres from the nearest supermarket and hospital. But since 2017, Rebecca and her husband Reece—both ecologists—have called the edge of the Strzelecki Desert home. Together, they manage an ambitious conservation project on 86,000 acres in Sturt National Park, rewilding a former sheep station and reintroducing native species like bilbies, pushing back against Australia’s extinction crisis. It’s ground breaking work. But it’s also life lived at the edge—where parenting and working without childcare centres, isolation, and the wild beauty of the land all collide. So what is it like being the most remote family in New South Wales whilst raising kids in the desert and trying to bring our endangered animals back from the brink? This is Rebecca West’s story.Our Autumn sponsor Telstra proudly partners with the ICPA to advocate for education equity by continually working on improved connectivity and communication for students and their families in rural and remote areas, particularly focusing on those relying on fixed land lines. To learn more about Telstra’s work with the ICPA and ‘RRed day’ CLICK HEREThe Country Women’s Association (CWA) of NSW is the largest women’s organisation in Australia, supporting NSW and ACT rural, remote and regional communities for more than 100 years – and they'd love you to JOIN THEM! Contact your local branch for more information, CLICK HERE to become a member today. https://www.instagram.com/motherlandaustralia
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258: Nicky Prosser is lapping up station life while preparing for a possible lung and heart transplant
Nicky Prosser lives on a station in the middle of South Australia that spans 1.2 million acres. She’s spent a lot of her life travelling around the state working in remote areas as a teacher and a principal. When Nicky was living in Maree, she met her property manager husband Nathan. They underwent one round of IVF to have their now 18-year old son, Ned. But now, at 50, Nicky is looking down the barrel of a possible heart and lung transplant due to a condition she was born with. But when you have a lung transplant, it’s often the case that the lungs don’t last longer than 10 years, and as Nicky says, she’s not quite ready to tap out of her life at 60. So she quit her job, moved away from her son and joined her husband in the middle of the outback with three dogs and 30,000 sheep. Because when the time comes for her to get new lungs, she’ll need to be living in Adelaide. Nicky has a great outlook on life, and her story is full of hope and a lot of love. This is her story. Our Autumn sponsor Telstra delivers some amazing programs through the Telstra Foundation. Telstra Foundation with the support of its Youth Advisory Council, partners with for-purpose organisations to deliver “tech and youth” focussed programs and resources in regional and remote areas. To learn more, head to: https://telstrafoundation.com Sign-up to the The Country Women’s Association (CWA) of NSW in April for a reduced rate on membership. Contact your local branch for more information, or CLICK HERE to become a member today. https://www.instagram.com/motherlandaustralia
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257: From drought, to depression & rage - a candid conversation with Steph Schmidt
Steph is a farmer, psychologist, and mum of three little boys who lives on a property in Worlds End, in South Australia. And right now, it kind of looks like the Worlds End is near because the state is in the midst of a horrific drought. Two weeks ago we released a bonus episode about the floods in central Queensland - today, I’m sharing a story from the other end of the spectrum. Steph and her husband and their three little boys are feeding their sheep daily. They are in desperate need for rain across their properties and are starting to feel the impact of no rain, not only financially but also on their mental health. And on the days her kids want to tap out of farming, she has to remind them of the realities of a drought. Steph and I had a wide ranging conversation about drought, mental health and more specifically maternal mental health - because as we can all acknowledge, there is a lot of pressure on rural families right now. But we also talk about her experience with postnatal depression, rage, ADHD, parenting three little boys and the importance of looking after yourself as a mother. This is her story. Lifeline 13 11 144Beyond Blue 1300 224 636PANDA 1300 726 306Our Autumn sponsor Telstra are clear on their purpose for connecting regional, rural and remote Australian families just like yours. Do you think you know Telstra? To learn more CLICK HERESign-up to the The Country Women’s Association (CWA) of NSW in April for a reduced rate on membership. Contact your local branch for more information, or CLICK HERE to become a member today. https://www.instagram.com/motherlandaustralia
Hosted by Stephanie Trethewey. Motherland shares real, raw, and unbelievable stories of motherhood told by women on the land. Each week, a rural mum from somewhere in Australia shares her motherhood journey. You'll hear stories of true grit, resilience, grief, and pure joy. Motherhood is the most life changing and transformative journey a woman can go through, and it's not always easy. No matter where you live or what you do, we're in this together and you're not alone.
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