The Country 28/03/25: Sam Owen talks to Jamie Mackay

This Waikato farmer, ag teacher and rural mental health advocate is a keynote speaker at SIDE in Timaru on April 7-9.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Our next guest on the Country is taking a lunch
break from his teaching duties, believe it or not, at
Matamata College in the White Cadow. His name is Sam Owen,
well known to listeners of the country. Sam, you've been
a former dairy farmer, you're now a dairy grazer, and
now you're a teacher and a mental health advocate. How
do you fit all that into a day?

Speaker 2 (00:21):
My friend, the alarm stall doze as if I'm a
dairy farmer, to be honest, But it's having that priority,
I suppose. And I wasn't ever a great fan of
teachers who didn't do, so to speak, they're still the
old analogy. If you can't do, you have to teach.
But I'm still trying to keep my hands dirty so

(00:42):
I can actually prove to the kids that I'm still
a dairy farm I don't think some of them like
the smell of silage when I walk in a bit late
some mornings, but hey, it's I enjoy it and it
does credits challenges but also creates the rewards as well.

Speaker 1 (00:57):
Okay, well, let's go back in time. You can tell
by the accent that your Welsh. While and while the
Welsh or Wales is not a dominating rugby side anything,
but the Welsh will be dominating outside the South Island
airy event. On yesterday's show, we spoke to Mrvan where
Alexander what a character she is North Otago farmer and

(01:19):
I suggested to her we've got too many people from
the wrong hemisphere running this outfit.

Speaker 2 (01:24):
Sam, well, it's probably the same as international rugby in
the North. We've got too many from the wrong hemisphere
running that too, But we won't go there, no Listen. Yeah,
I was approached by side to come and have it
yar and obviously looking for something a bit different. I've
been fortunate enough to interview Levan we on my wee

(01:46):
bit of a side hustle with a podcast and she
had some interesting thoughts. But I mean, I'm just trying to,
you know, put it out there that you know, there
could be thousands of farmers in the country that could
speak about what I speak about. But I've just probably
been a bit more vocal but my journey and try
to get people to pick up some hints and tips
that I've learned along the way.

Speaker 1 (02:06):
Okay, Sam, So you're not only talking the talk, You've
effectively walked the walk. You've got a history of mental
health issues, hopefully they're behind you, or are they ever
behind you?

Speaker 2 (02:17):
Never behind you? But I mean you have to take
the case of if you're not learning from what you've
been through, you're not really taking the most out of
the situation. Every situation, whether it be positive or negative,
offers constructive ideas for what you can improve on. And
I'm still walking the walk. The black dog is always
in the revision meraphon now, but you never know when

(02:39):
it's going to in the cab with you and come
along for a ride again. But listen, there's different different
elements to everything in different times where things push you
to limits, but you just have to take you know,
take the lessons from it and move on.

Speaker 1 (02:54):
Okay. So one of the issues with mental health is
often taking a break and doing something else, getting off
farm is does teaching do that for you?

Speaker 2 (03:05):
One hundred percent? And that's why I've never once we
we downed the caps and less dairy farming, I'm make
sure that I wasn't being well roaded into just one
job because I believe having that variety, whether it be
you know, a community good like coaching rugby or football,

(03:25):
or doing some rural sport work and mixing that up
with what goes on farm helps me maintain a fairly
even keell because I'm not just sitting here looking at
the window at the green drape that we have in
parts of the white heat at the moment. It just
gives me a different aspect and a bit more thankful
for what I do and different kind of building up

(03:49):
the good vibes because I'm doing different in different areas. Well.

Speaker 1 (03:53):
You're one of the guests speakers on the MC there
do you reckon that give us an afternoon off to
go and play golf while we're in Timaro?

Speaker 2 (04:00):
Well, I think if we used it for the betterment
of our men mental health.

Speaker 1 (04:03):
I was just thinking about that. Mind you you were
like me, a frustrated golfer. Golf can be very injurious
to my mental health, Sam, especially when I choke on
the eighteenth hole.

Speaker 2 (04:14):
And it happens, but it builds up, you know, that
strong backbone that you can go back because, as we
all know, with any sport, there's any one shot or
one try or one pass that brings us back the
next week.

Speaker 1 (04:25):
Sam Owen great to catch up on the country. You
are one of the keynote speakers along with Cameron Bagriy
Olympic rower Emma Twig. Really looking forward to hearing her.
The South Island Airy Event is on and Timaru on
April seven to nine. Just google it. Registrations are still open.
It's going to be a conference designed especially for farmers

(04:46):
and it's good to have an out and out farmer,
namely you speaking there. Great to catch up Sam Journey.

Speaker 2 (04:52):
We'll look forward to see any