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House of Assembly - Fifty-Third Parliament, First Session (53-1)
2014-05-21 Daily Xml
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Muster, Mrs Robyn

Mr KNOLL (Schubert) (15:38): I rise to acknowledge one of the great women upon whose hard work the success of her local community has thrived—that is, one Mrs Robyn Muster. Robyn was born in July 1955 at the Freeling and District Hospital. Whilst she travelled on occasions far away from Freeling, it was her home for most of her life, and she was homesick whenever she left Freeling for too long.

After attending the local primary school, which had only 25 students, she studied at Immanuel College—a school which had 500 in the city in 1969. She was the first woman to study agriculture at Immanuel and worked in the industry following year 12. This would be followed by many 'first woman' achievements throughout her life. Women in agriculture was a constant theme for Robyn, building upon the beliefs and the strong encouragement of her parents, Colin and Joy Lienert, who were very well-known and well-awarded Berkshire pork breeders in the region. Following school, she worked at the wheat research/plant breeding program at Roseworthy College. She was promoted and worked as a technical officer for 15 years—one of the very few women on campus, let alone in such a role.

She married Barry Muster in 1981, whom she had met at a Freeling Rosedale parish youth meeting, and they moved in together in the Muster homestead which they renamed 'Schoenfeld Manor'. Robyn and Barry had two children, Travis and Kelly, and were involved as a family in the local sporting scene in Freeling: Kelly in hockey and tennis and Travis with his football.

Robyn's hard work in the agriculture sector is one of her greatest contributions to the community and to South Australia at large, especially in advocating for women in farming and agriculture. In 1997, Robyn was the first female to be elected as a councillor of the Royal Adelaide Show society, which celebrates its 175th anniversary this year, representing the grain and fodder section. Robyn would represent the grain and fodder section for 17 years, and was again the first female elected onto the Royal Adelaide Show society's executive committee for five years.

In 2002, Robyn won a scholarship to attend the 3rd World Rural Women's Congress in Madrid, Spain. She also attended the fourth world congress in 2006 in Durban. As is usually the case in rural communities across the state, Robyn was a good 'joiner of things' and volunteered at the local op shop for over 15 years, the school council of the Freeling Primary School for over 10 years, and on the Faith Lutheran College council for eight years. Robyn's dedication to her local community was duly recognised when she was awarded the Light Regional Council Citizen of the Year Award in 2003.

Robyn's contribution to her community was clearly much larger than being a member of the Liberal Party, which is how I first came to know her. Being a party member and holding various positions within the Freeling branch, including as president for many years, she was a stalwart of the Liberal Party. She was very active at election time and, indeed, held a fundraiser for me only four weeks before her death. Even once bedridden, she continued to worry about the Freeling booth being manned on election day.

Robyn was taken by the scourge of cancer, but she and her family refused to let her illness, which was present for such a short time at the end of her life, determine her legacy to the community that she held so dear. The agricultural world is poorer for losing Robyn, but her achievements and firsts, of which there are many, will only serve to help future generations of rural families, and especially rural women, realise their potential with as much passion and zeal as Robyn expressed, and for that we in the rural communities are richer for having known her.

Her funeral, which was held in Freeling, was attended by around 600 people, which is not bad for a town the size of Freeling. My thoughts are with Robyn's husband Barry, her son Travis and his new wife Kendall, her daughter Kelly, and her parents Colin and Joy and Barry's mother, Ruth. Having said all that, what impressed me most about Robyn was her no-nonsense approach to getting things done. She cared for others in her community and always held true to her Lutheran values. She confirms very much the saying that is often said: that it is often the good ones who are taken too soon, and Robyn is definitely one of those.

I will never forget Robyn and the way she approached life. She was one of the best examples of local community spirit, and she has inspired many others to continue her work in the local community. She is someone I look up to and someone I am going to miss deeply. She exemplifies for me everything that is right about our rural communities and how they work together to look after each other. I will make sure that I try to live up to her example over my time in this place.

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