At home with the Kentville O'Connors
Green acres is the place to be, farm living is the life for us, land as far as the eye can see...
To provide a service that is sought after by our clients and of which we can be justifiably proud.
To live a life of adventure and to grab opportunities when they present themselves.
To dance in the rain!
To be the best we can be and to live our lives well and to share our talents. You are never too old to learn and it is never too late to start a new adventure.
In June 2017, Bruce and I acquired my family's business Russ Equipment Pty Ltd with our partners Mark and Debbie Ferguson. It was a scary step but it is working out well with the support of some really great customers.
In 2017 our Arabian stud took a step in a new direction with the acquisition of a pure crabbet stallion Pevensey Intrigue in partnership with Kellie McDougall. We confident he is going to cross well with our daughters of Silver Wind Van NIna.
In June 2017, Bruce and I acquired my family's business Russ Equipment Pty Ltd with our partners Mark and Debbie Ferguson. It was a scary step but it is working out well with the support of some really great customers.
About Us
We shared a run down old Queenslander on a rented property at Doolandella, filled with ramshackle stables and yards, a trotting track and, eventually an arena fenced with bush timber and a round yard fenced with a strand of wire, both of which I built for myself.
Bruce was a Chartered Accountant and I was a high School Senior graduate who couldn't settle on what I wanted to do.
Bruce loved his Standardbred race horses and I had my Arabian gelding and assortment of other breeds.
Mutual love of horses and the things we could do with them brought us together and we married in April 1985.
We competed at the Ag shows, Bruce with his trotters and me with my Arab. I also drove in ladies races at the shows. Back then the Harness racing board would not licence women to drive in registered races.
Somewhere in there we moved to a little fibro cottage on 2 and half acres in Gumdale, a little rural haven not far from the bay. A rustic open 8 stall barn, stallion box and yard and 4 other shelters and yards, a trotting track, a large dam to swim horses, a home made horse walker, and half a dozen turnout yards. We were made in the shade.
Bruce opened his own practice and I rose up the ranks in Telstra. We trained horses before and after our day jobs and hit the shows and tracks on the weekend.
In August 1995 our son Michael was born and a new chapter began in our lives. Michael had his own little seat affixed to the trotting gig, kindly made by a family friend, though he much preferred to push his own little wooden cart around the track while we jogged the horses. Grandpop Russ re-wheeled that thing several times and even made a sturdier set of handles.
Then followed pre-school, primary school, little athletics, high school, choir, musicals, excursions, tuck-shop duty, parent help day, committees, and just a bunch of fun.
These days Michael is a Regional Town Planner, living his own life with his partner Nick and Bruce and I are doing our own thing.
Bruce is hot keen on Masters Athletics and I am into all things computer particularly Adobe Photoshop. We both play with the horses and Bruce has learnt to be handy with all sorts of tools.
We travelled to Malaga in 2018 where Bruce competed successfully in the Pentathlon at the World Masters Games. Had a ball, made new friends, learnt that we couldn't speak Spanish worth a dam, but paper and pencil and a Spanish dictionary got us through. The people we met were so friendly and happy to help.
Together we are a partnership with a great deal of skills in a number of fields and an enthusiasm to use them to help others.
The Kentville O'Connors
Bruce and Janice with their son, Michael at his graduation day from the University of Queensland at St Lucia in 2020.
He arrived late in our lives, just in time to reignite our lives and take us in another direction.
It's such a priveledge to share the journey of one's children, to see them grow into the person you'd hoped they'd be when you first held the timy bundle in your arms.
Oh, Michael graduated with a Bachelor of Regional Town Planner with First Class honours.
All those years building his own towns and road networks in his sand pit and whatever horse paddock was empty at the time sure paid off. :D
Want some more piccies...
Ruby O'Connor
Comlodge security, Ruby is an Australian Red Cattle dog or heeler. Heeler are so called because they have an inborn tendency to nip at the heels of any stock they are asked to round up.
Yes, they can get kicked a lot. They are also extremely intelligent, and very loyal to their family.
They also quite like to anticipate your requests and round up without verbal orders and or in spite of orders to stop that!
They definetly have a tendency to herd deafness when they are doing something they want to. :D
