Thank you for helping us COVER THE COUNTRY

…so that we can continue to go the extra mile for the people of remote Australia.

Thank you to everyone who gave generously to our Cover the Country campaign in 2012. As part of our Centenary year, we asked people to give a $20 note to Frontier Services so that we can continue to provide care to people across the country. Frontier Services grew out of the work of the Australian visionary John Flynn, the man on the $20 note.

In total the campaign raised $93,702.25 for Frontier Services. We are very grateful to everyone who supported Frontier Services in the centenary year and contributed to this amazing result. This money will help us continue to provide vital services to people in remote Australia, as we enter the next century of our work.

You can still make a donation to Frontier Services on our website. Donate now!

John Flynn Original Campaign…

The idea for the ‘Cover the Country’ campaign is actually taken from an idea that John Flynn himself conceived to raise funds for a study of needs “beyond the furthest fences”.

‘The Plot’, as Rev John Flynn jokingly liked to refer to it, aimed to raise the £350 that was needed for the Presbyterian Church to release a man for a period of one year so that he could undertake this survey throughout the Northern Territory.

Flynn came up with the idea of inviting supporters to assist by virtually laying a quarter of a mile of threepenny pieces. According to his calculations this would raise the £350 that was needed.

Flynn’s sister Rosetta edited a women’s column, under the name of Cousin Charlotte, in a church newspaper, and Flynn saw it as an ideal opportunity to promote his campaign.

Rosetta had always considered Flynn’s ideas as “hare-brained” so Flynn conspired with a friend to send a letter to Cousin Charlotte on his behalf, so that Rosetta would not know it was her brother’s idea.

The Plot worked and Cousin Charlotte pushed the idea to her readers. As a result, the campaign was a huge success and the money was raised. As it happened, Flynn himself was chosen to undertake the survey.

The report that came from this survey and was presented to the Assembly of the Presbyterian Church on 26 September 1912, resulted in the establishment of the Australian Inland Mission.

A 100 years on, instead of threepenny pieces, we are asking you to help us by donating a $20 note. This money will allow us to continue to support the people of remote Australia in to the future.