Claire Liversidge has been crowned the annual Goulburn Show’s 2022 Young Woman – formerly known as Goulburn Showgirl.
She is following the footsteps of her mother, Roxanne Smith who was named Crookwell Showgirl in 1989.
Claire, 22, who grew up on a farm in Cowra, has always loved the rural lifestyle, particularly animals.
“Since I was a little kid, I’ve always wanted to work with animals,” she said.
“I’ve always loved marine life and agriculture life. Being born and bred on a farm, it was basically my life. So I thought I could combine those two passions and make a career out of it.”
Her dream career is to be a conservationist for agriculture and marine biology while running her own cattle property and creating a safe haven for rescue animals.
Claire is now completing her certificate in agricultural studies and hopes to later secure a bachelor’s degree of environmental sustainability, with a major in agricultural innovation and water studies.
“Everybody says that farming is a job, but it doesn’t feel like that for me,” she said.
To be named Goulburn’s Young Woman was a dream come true for Claire.
“This opportunity allows me to gain so many experiences in which I can continue to develop, while following my career goal,” she said.
It also gave her the opportunity to represent her town and encourage others to get involved in the community.
“When I was little, I used to see all these girls in their sashes at the Goulburn and Cowra shows and I always wanted to be like them and be that special girl that’s walking around and giving out ribbons and prizes,” she said.
Claire entered the Goulburn Show’s 2022 Young Woman competition as her first step towards reaching her goal of becoming an ambassador for young people in the agricultural industry.
She said the biggest skill attributed to a Young Woman would have to be public speaking as well as having a lot of involvement with the Show and local community overall.
Claire’s community involvement has included playing and being part of her local soccer club in Gunning and Goulburn, being a part of the Show cattle team in high school and participating in many ANZAC parades with her school.
Along with her love for animals, Claire has many hobbies and interests including dance, which she performs and teaches in Goulburn and Canberra.
When she’s not studying or looking after animals, Claire works as a receptionist at a dental practice.
The 2022 Goulburn Show is on this weekend from 9 am to 5 pm Saturday, 5 March and 9 am to 4 pm Sunday, 6 March.