2025 Citizen of the Year Award winners

Our 2025 Citizen of the Year Award winners have gone above and beyond in contributing to The Barossa Council community.

Bruce Hancock is a man of the land in every sense of the word.

From dusty sheep yards to commercial supermarket chains, the Citizen of the Year has provided 40 years of exceptional service to SA’s agricultural industry.

He has added significant value to the Australian lamb supply chain, which in recent decades has added the equivalent of a Big Mac burger to the weight of the average lamb year on year.

Describing himself as a “generalist in agriculture”, Bruce has worked in many key advisory and industry roles, and says agriculture is as much about people as processes.

The Nuriootpa resident is an advocate for youth education and development, helping hundreds of students gain a foothold in the industry.

“Agriculture itself is void of enough workforce and if we’re going to grow our productivity to feed ourselves and the world, we actually have to have more young people come into agriculture,” says Bruce.

“Once they get into agriculture, they find it very inspiring, extremely welcoming and very rewarding, but the little piece that’s been missing is getting them connected into agriculture.

“Mentors are extremely important to help people to develop their skills, their capability and their confidence, to project who they are, and for them to find a place in industry.”

Now retired, Bruce is equally passionate about service to his local community. He’s proudly served 30 years as a member of Angaston Agricultural Bureau and was involved in the bronze recasting of the “Day Off Peter” statue in Angaston’s main street to celebrate the 120^th anniversary.

“That’s no mean feat for a small group of volunteers to raise the funds to do those sorts of projects so I guess to me that’s a great outcome, something measurable and a lifelong legacy left by the Ag Bureau here in the Barossa,” Bruce says.

“It’s just another way of connecting people to agriculture.”

He is grateful to his colleagues and family for their unwavering support.

“Volunteering, I think it just comes natural. It’s just a part of our family ethos and it’s about rolling up your sleeves and working together for the greater good,” says Bruce.

“I’d like to thank the Barossa community. We came here 30 odd years ago and they put their arms around me and invited me in, and I’m extremely grateful for that.

“Many folds over, I’ve definitely received far more than what I’ve actually given, but hopefully what I’ve given has been valued and appreciated.”

And Bruce has high hopes for the future of agriculture, which he believes is in safe hands.

“I hope for greater sustainable productivity – we must produce more, but it must be sustainable. We’ve got to look after all our resources, whether that be the water, the land and for me, the people as well,” says Bruce.

“So we must have that young generation coming into agriculture and aspiring to do better.”

When the siren sounds, emergency services volunteer Jaimee Mustard is ready and waiting with her unique set of practical skills, experience and empathy.

Born into a family of CFS volunteers – her dad a senior member of Nuriootpa CFS and her mum providing operations support – the station was like “a big family” for Jaimee, who joined as a cadet at 11.

“We’d come down to the station and it’s like having 20 dads,” laughs Jaimee, “being occupied by someone trying to run the radio and babysit us so dad could make it out on the truck!”

Joining the senior brigade at 16, the Young Citizen of the Year was exposed to a range of training and experiences including firefighting, closed-circuit breathing apparatus, road crash rescue, radio operations and on-the-ground logistics support with the strike team.

The 26-year-old from Nuriootpa also fought the Pinery fires alongside senior members, protecting assets in incredibly challenging conditions.

“The brigade are good in that they’ll ease you into things and you’re not going out to a massive job straight off the bat,” says Jaimee.

“They’re very supportive and protective – they want us to stay around too.”

Jaimee brings a female perspective to the role, which led her to volunteer with the South Australian Ambulance Service (SAAS) at Kapunda six years ago, becoming a volunteer Ambulance Officer.

“I always loved being the female at the road crashes (providing) a bit of dignity for female patients; they’d get me to hold up sheets and just basic stuff like that to help out,” says Jaimee. “So when I found out you could volunteer with SAAS I looked into it and signed up and fell in love with it.”

At a time when volunteers can be hard to find, Jaimee says both organisations are incredibly supportive, and encourages prospective volunteers to “give it a go.”

“The team camaraderie is a massive thing. Certainly the CFS, you’re out with a crew of at least five or six, often long hours stuck in a small cabin together – you learn to like each other,” laughs Jaimee.

“For me, the rewards definitely outweigh everything else…when you depend on each other’s lives sometimes, those relationships you don’t just find anywhere else.

“We’re a big family here.”

Lyn and Geoff Hansen like to serve up a hearty helping of generosity with every meal.

As volunteers of Kiwanis Barossa Valley, the Nuriootpa couple felt they could fill a gap supplying simple, nutritious meals to Barossa families and children in need.

“We went to the first meeting and they were friendly, welcoming, and serving the children of the world and that just struck at our heart and we kept going,” says Geoff.

Over the past year the Nuriootpa couple has cooked around 4000 of staggering 8600 emergency relief meals, earning them the Award for Active Citizenship.

“I was looking for something to do and I just leaned over and said it sounds easy, let’s do it,” laughs Geoff.

“It’s not as hard as people think - all we do is coordinate it – and people are really good. Word’s getting out there of what we do and people are supplying us produce and all we do is throw it in a pot and stir it!”

The couple is part of a broader network of volunteers, service groups, churches, schools, service providers and businesses who source or donate local produce, and cook, pack and deliver meals.

They work alongside local churches including Lutheran Community Care, Centrecare, Impact, Restore, Christian Hub and Barossa Community Kitchen.

“They always ask what can we use and I tell them anything but lettuce – you can’t freeze lettuce!” Geoff says.

In recent times demand has increased from 50 meals per week to 150, as families feel cost of living pressures.

“We just tell them there’s no limit – if they need it, give us a yell and we can soon make it,” Geoff says. “Once they realise that, they still ring us.”

The couple say the privilege of serving others is all theirs.

“We’ve had such lovely responses from the people who get these meals. They’re absolutely excited they’ve got a hot meal,” says Lyn.

“Just the smiles and the look in their eyes when they get these meals is just amazing…that’s what keeps you going,” adds Geoff.

Asked who’s in charge in the kitchen, Geoff is quick to defer to Lyn, a former commercial kitchen cook.

“She tells me off – I do things back to front; I put the onion in later,” laughs Geoff.

While the Barossa is well-known as an events destination, we twinkled a little brighter when a satellite of local stars took centre stage in the name of charity.

Community Event of the Year ‘Stars of Barossa’ saw nine contestants “dance off” at a gala event inspired by the popular TV show Dancing with the Stars.

Event organiser Charmaine Reimann says the Barossa community truly embraced the concept, raising a staggering $54,000 for cancer research and support.

“I realised no-one in SA was holding the same event and the Barossa was the perfect region to do that,” says Charmaine.

“We had a small target that we wanted to reach of $20,000 and we didn’t even know if we’d reach that target, but we certainly surpassed that.

“We’re certainly a generous area. I was just so proud of the amount of money we raised…and being able to get the community together and get them behind the event.”

Charmaine says it would not have been possible without the support of local volunteers, businesses and sponsors, plus a 350-strong audience with deep pockets.

“I felt very proud, being the first event. I do love to hold events and throw a good party, but this was a big one!” laughs Charmaine.

“It was definitely exciting, especially for the Stars who were our dancers on the night.”

Charmaine says it was an easy decision to donate proceeds to Barossa Area Fundraisers for Cancer and the Cancer Council of SA.

“I just realised how many people, not only in our community but everywhere, have been affected by cancer, whether it’s themselves or family and friends,” says Charmaine.

Charmaine is now hoping to make Stars of Barossa a staple of the Barossa events calendar, with plans for a bigger and better event in 2025 supporting the Barossa branch of Make-A-Wish Australia.

“We’ve had eight (dancers) already who want to be part of this event and to surpass what we made last year would be fantastic,” Charmaine says.

“Besides making so much money for the charity, people just like to get dressed up and having the Stars involved makes for a fun night out.”