'In 1983 Mrs Mikie Maas OAM founded the Dorothea Mackellar Memorial Society in recognition of the contribution Dorothea made to Australian literature. To raise funds for a beautiful bronze statue of Dorothea Mackellar, sitting side-saddle on her horse, Mrs Maas started a poetry competition which had a small entry fee.
'The aim of the Dorothea Mackellar Poetry Awards is to capture the imagination of school students across Australia, inspiring them with a passion for poetry and a love of country. It is a unique national project, giving Australia's youth a voice and an opportunity to strive for excellence in literature.
'The Awards are conducted by the Society through recognition of the contribution Dorothea made to Australian literature and also to ignite a spirit of patriotism among Australia's young people through written verse. The poetry competition attracts some 10,000 entries per year from school around Australia and The Australian Government is the major sponsor of the Awards.' (http://www.visitgunnedah.com.au/index.php/dorothea-mackellar-poetry-awards
'Urbenville Public School might only have 21 students but it has just won two coveted awards at Australia's longest-running and biggest schools poetry competition.' (Introduction)
Website for the Dorothea Mackellar Poetry Awards, the oldest and largest poetry competition for school students in Australia. The awards are hosted by the Dorothea Mackellar Memorial Society which is based in Gunnedah, north-west New South Wales.
Source: The Dorothea Mackellar Poetry Awards website, www.dorothea.com.au (sighted 29/09/2009)