Narromine Shire provided the first ports of call for 12-year-old Dusty Langby and his crew of intrepid trekkers participating in the “Dollar For Dusty” fundraising walk that aims to raise $1 million to help medical transport company Little Wings fly paediatricians to bush communities.

After setting out from Dusty’s home town of Warren on Sunday, August 30, the team’s first stop was Trangie, some 55km away. The first day was also the longest in distance during the 16-day trek, which a scheduled end in Canberra on Monday, September 14.

Trangie residents welcomed Dusty and team in style, where they overnighted before continuing. On the second full day the team walked 37km to Narromine, arriving late in the afternoon on Monday, August 31.

On arriving in Narromine, Dusty said the soles of his feet were a bit sore, and his thighs, but otherwise things were good.

He credited his relative Freddy Webb with getting him through the first couple of days.

“This guy helped me push through it and kept me company,” Dusty said.

The support of locals and passersby was important, he added.

“Thank you to everyone who came out along the way, heaps of people tooting their horns,” he said.

“I think we’re going to do pretty well,” Dusty said of the journey to come.

After a well-deserved break, Dusty and the team stopped by the property of Dr Kelly Bradley, where the youngster formally opened the new medical practice on Warren Road before heading back to their billeted accommodation with local families for a good night’s sleep.

The next morning, the team gathered for a fundraising breakfast in Narromine at Soul Food Depot, organised by the Narromine Junior Gorillas. Four dollars from the sale of a brekky roll was donated to the cause, and quite a few locals joined the team for breakfast and to see them off on their next leg to Tomingley, on Narromine Shire’s southern border.

Gorillas’ spokesperson Caroline Maxwell said the club was pleased to be able to support the cause.

“We encouraged Soul Food to help us organise breakfast, so that Dusty's team would start the day well nourished, and the Narromine Junior Gorillas have donated the breakfast to Dusty's team so that they would start the day well with a full belly,” Caroline told Dubbo Photo News.

“We have used our wonderful social media powers to encourage people to come and enjoy brekky with Dusty and cheer him on as he leaves town,” she said.

Narromine Country Women’s Association (CWA) branch president, Gabby Teale-McEvoy, said it was important to support the trek.

“A lot of what Dusty’s doing about raising awareness of health in the bush really aligns to CWA's vision, and so we've made lunch packs for the team, the walkers, and the support crew to take with them,” she explained.

“They've got some lovely Mumblepeg oranges, apples, Heather McIntyre's locally famous scones, sandwiches, and a quiche. That should keep them sustained on the next couple of legs of their journey,” Gabby added.

The CWA also provided toilet paper for the portaloo being towed by a support vehicle, and a cash donation to the cause.

Narromine Shire mayor, Cr Ewen Jones told Dubbo Photo News the council had organised accommodation at Tomingley for Dusty and the team, and would make a donation. Altogether, the support was valued at $3000.

When he finally gets to meet with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in Canberra on Tuesday, September 15, Dusty has one simple request of our nation’s leader.

“All I'm asking is if he could match every dollar I make, and if he does that, that'd just be extraordinary,” Dusty said.

When he arrived in Trangie and Narromine, the fundraising pot was sitting at $175,000. By the time he left Narromine for Tomingley, it had grown by $10,000.

The funds raised just keep on climbing with each passing day as the Dollar For Dusty team treks on, and at the time of writing earlier this week, the fundraising pot sat at $286,813 with the team well over halfway to Canberra.

Dusty’s cause is one that every family in rural, regional and remote areas can identify with and support.

“We really need more paediatricians in the bush, and we need kids to be able to get to paediatricians in the city,” Caroline Maxwell said.

“Little Wings fly kids to Sydney and back for free, and they fly paediatricians to the bush, too. Definitely donate!” she concluded.