Thirty two years ago Warren Giffin finished travelling the world and took on his first full-time job, as an agriculture teacher with Tully State High School.
He never left.
The much-loved educator has taught hundreds of students, even circling around to second generations now, and built a financially self-sufficient farming operation at the school.
Two years into his tenure, he introduced Droughtmaster cattle and the school's very own stud was registered as #710.
After decades promoting the breed and introducing generations of students to the industry, Mr Giffin's leadership landed him the 2022 Droughtmaster Society President's Award at a recent school awards ceremony.
"Warren Giffin lives and breathes Droughtmaster cattle, and he will espouse the breed's virtues to anyone who will stand still and listen to him," a society statement said.
For the teacher, who grew up on a wheat and sheep operation in western NSW, the recognition was unexpected.
"I'm just a school teacher and I am mad about cattle," he said.
"I'm not someone who does things for awards, I just do it because I love it.
"We have just been working hard, developing our stud really seriously for probably about 22 years.
"We have had a lot of support from the society...they treat us with respect. Even though we are a school, we are part of the gang."
Tully High has become a leader in agriculture studies in Queensland and was home to the top agriculture science student in 2018 while three students have reached state finals for parading and judging competitions.
The school runs 50 to 60 head of cattle on an intensively farmed 60 acre block.
But the size hasn't stopped Mr Giffin from running their operation to an industry standard.
"I really think highly of the breed and I want to maintain that integrity and present a good product," he said.
The self-sufficient operation doesn't rely on government funding.
Students help to build fences, break in cattle, train for shows on weekends and undertake a holistic study of agriculture too.
Next year they hope to have their new undercover shed built to allow them to continue training in all-weather conditions, in the high rainfall town.
"All of our infrastructure we have got on our stud is from all our savings over the years," Mr Giffin said.
"We have done it the hard way, that's been good for the students to see.
"I've always had a passion for agriculture and I'm a big advocate for agriculture generally.
"We are feeding the world and we have got to get people understanding and respecting it for what it is, I don't think ag gets the degree of respect it deserves."
Lucy Kinbacher
Raised on a cattle property at Biggenden, Lucy Kinbacher has spent 10 years working across metropolitan, regional and rural publications in both Queensland and NSW. Lucy has been the editor of the Queensland Country Life and North Queensland Register since 2021.
Raised on a cattle property at Biggenden, Lucy Kinbacher has spent 10 years working across metropolitan, regional and rural publications in both Queensland and NSW. Lucy has been the editor of the Queensland Country Life and North Queensland Register since 2021.
