As Sunraysia Residential Services Inc. gets set to mark its 50-year anniversary later this year, it is the people behind the progress who tell the real story of change.
Mick Pedersen was just 19 when he first picked up the tools at SRS Benetook Farm, helping build the cottage veranda on what was then little more than a grey shell.
Thirteen years on, that same property has grown into a thriving green oasis among the fruit blocks – and Mick has grown right alongside it.
Now 32, he rattles off the farm skills he has picked up over the years with ease.
“Gardening, weeding, using farm chemicals, building fences, driving the tractor, taking apart cars, starting the pump and delivering eggs,” Mick said.
Mick has become a familiar face around the farm and part of the wider SRS community. Through SRS, he has accessed accommodation, support workers, social programs and hands-on farm training – and it was also where he met his wife, Emma, in 2015.
“I was in the shed,” he said. “I was looking at her, and she was looking at me. I thought she looked pretty and I invited her for lunch.”
Some of Mick’s proudest achievements include transforming an old Holden Commodore into an American-style cop car, completing a Certificate II in Horticulture through Murray Mallee Training Company and assisting with the construction of an extension to the farm’s main cottage.
Benetook Farm was created to provide meaningful opportunities for people with disability through practical, hands-on learning. What started in 2013 with just 49 hens has since grown into a bustling social enterprise with around 2000 hens, public events, accommodation and tourism experiences.
Farm Manager Michael Marks said participants at the farm come each week for many different reasons.
“For some, it’s about developing skills that may lead to future employment pathways,” he said. “For others, it’s about building independence, forming friendships or simply having a safe and welcoming place where they feel valued and included.
“We see people grow in confidence over time – whether that’s learning to work as part of a team, interacting with customers in the cafe, caring for animals or trying something completely new for the first time.
“Those everyday experiences can have a positive impact on wellbeing and social connection.”
Participants can learn skills across layer hen production, horticulture, viticulture, hospitality, customer service, woodwork, beekeeping and arts and crafts, while also helping run the farm’s cafe and general store.
Also offered are health and wellbeing programs such as sports, yoga and meditation, and dance and movement which aim to help participants feel good and be ready to learn and contribute.
Today, the farm has become a destination for both the local community and visitors, offering market days, a playground, maze, mini golf, bike tracks, a pickleball court and farm stay accommodation at Eli’s Place – a purpose-built accessible cottage designed to support travellers living with disability.
For Mick, though, the farm is more than just a place to learn new skills – it’s where he built a future.
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