Owners' Profile
Introducing the McConnel family
John is the 3rd generation of the McConnel family to own Mt Brisbane. He has served on the Droughtmaster board as a Director and is a classifier for the breed. He was instrumental in getting many feedlot and carcass competitions started in SE Qld as he has always believed this is the best way to receive feedback on your cattle & compare them. John is a Life Member of the Esk Show in recognition of his contribution to the show and is also on the Esk Jockey Club Board.
Carli was originally a Murray, one of the pioneering families in western Qld. She was raised on Beaconsfield in the Ilfracombe area of Western Qld. After finishing school at NEGS in Armidale she worked on several properties around Longreach before her marriage to John in 1972. Carli spent over 13 years working with the Droughtmaster Society as founder and editor of the Newsletter as well as holding various positions within the Board of the Society. Never one to sit still, she is now enjoying working with several weed committees, AgForce, the two local shows and SEQ Beef Research Committee as well as helping edit Beef Talk, a DPI publication.
Rob is our eldest son and is pictured with his wife Dinie and son Andrew, who was born in March 2010. Rob initially worked in rural finance across NSW and Qld in Tamworth, Rockhampton and Longreach before moving to the city to pursue a career in corporate finance. He is currently working in Brisbane as a Partner in Deloitte’s Corporate Finance team after time in their private equity team in London and Sydney. At last count he had a Bachelor of Agricultural Economics, Masters of Commerce, Masters of Applied Finance and Investment, an MBA and has completed his CA. In contrast to this, he is always an enthusiastic worker on Mt Brisbane and returns whenever possible to give a hand. He is a keen rugby follower having spent some time playing for Queensland Country as well as having played in the USA, the UK and Hong Kong.
Our daughter Susie Sullivan continues to be actively involved in the running of the stud herd. Susie and her husband Luke, who is an agronomist, live outside Dalby. Susie is currently enjoying motherhood for the first time having welcomed Gemma in May 2011, prior to this she had been an Agribusiness Manager with Suncorp. Both she and Luke are regular helpers on Mt Brisbane and aim to break in a small team of stud weaners each year that are available for sale. They run their own stud herd within the Mt Brisbane stud and Susie has assumed responsibility for the marketing and promotion of the stud. She has judged at numerous regional shows, has judged at the Royal Queensland Show, twice at the Toowoomba Royal Show and was invited by the Droughtmaster Stud Breeders Society to judge the Gatton Futurity in 2009. She has spoken at a number of education days on topics ranging from “Cattle Selection” to “Obtaining Finance”.
Don is now the ‘mainstay’ of Mt Brisbane. Don manages the day to day work of the property and is a regular exhibitor of prime cattle at the local shows. He is a classifier with the Droughtmaster Breed and is also on the senior judging panel. He has judged many regional shows in SE Qld and is judging the Romagnola and South Devon breeds at this years Ekka. In 2010 Don was named state winner in the Virbac Proud Achievers Award recognising the continuing herd improvement work he has undertaken at Mt Brisbane. Don is actively involved in the three local show societies (Kilcoy/Esk/Toogoolawah) and is a steward in either Prime Cattle or Stud Cattle at each show, having been Chief Steward of the Prime Cattle Section at Esk for a number of years now. He is also involved in the Esk Jockey Club Committee as assistant starter and barrier assistant. In December 2010 Don and Andrea Conway announced their engagement and will be married in 2012.
Ian is a Grazing Extension Officer with the DPI & F in SE Qld. He is a keen rugby player having played for the Western Qld team. In 2006 he travelled around the world with his wife Sheena. While away he worked for a livestock ear tag company in Scotland and played rugby for the local club ‘Selkirk’. Ian has studied animal production in the United States while youth ambassador for the Murray Grey breed. Ian can also be seen judging local shows around South East Queensland. Ian & Sheena have two children, a daughter Ailee born January 2009 and a son Sam born June 2011.
Bruce is our youngest son, and is pictured with his wife Alison and son Lachlan, born 23rd August 2009. Bruce completed a Bachelor of Agribusiness at UQ Gatton before joining NAB in 2002. He worked in a number of locations around QLD and NSW in various Agribusiness Banking roles. He is now based in Gatton as an Agribusiness Manager, after 2 years in Melbourne as an Agribusiness Strategy Advisor. He was one of the Youngest Judges appointed to judge at the Royal Queensland Show and has also judged a number of rural shows throughout Southern QLD and Northern NSW. Bruce is a keen Rugby player, having played for Melbourne Rugby Club, and Western Bulldogs in Brisbane. In 2009 Bruce was named the National Rural Ambassador, and is the treasurer of the Queensland Show’s Next Generation Group.'