I'm not sure about you, but when I left high school, I didn't know a few things - how to dress (or style my hair, for that matter), hold a conversation, who I was, what I wanted to do for a living. 

For Jimmy Whalan, these things - which some of us spend a lifetime still unable to work out - all seem to have fallen into place 

"After graduating high school in 2021, I was given the opportunity to take on the role of Indigenous Affairs Reporter at the Coonabarabran Times by our wonderful editor, Kait Britton," Jimmy told the Western Plains App. 

 He attended Coonabarabran Public School before completing his secondary schooling and the HSC at Coonabarabran High School. 

"I think high school is where I really started to come into my own academically. I always enjoyed writing at high school; something about putting what's in your mind onto paper I find really rewarding," he explained. 

"I don't know if I necessarily considered a career in journalism earlier, but when I was given the opportunity, I saw it as a new way to challenge myself and learn some new skills, and that is exactly what this job has been able to do for me and so much more." 

 Coonabarabran Times editor Kait Britton told the Western Plains App, "We headhunted him and convinced him to come join our rag-tag team. Jimmy was originally hired as an Indigenous Affairs Reporter - a contract position funded partly by Meta and the Walkley Foundation. That funding has now concluded, but Jimmy was keen to stay on as a journalist at the Coonabarabran Times. And we are very fortunate to have him!" 

"Over the past year, Jimmy has shone a bigger spotlight on local Indigenous issues through the Coonabarabran Times and has forged strong professional relationships with Elders and community members. Jimmy has also been able to take issues of national interest, such as the Voice to Parliament, and convey that on a local level to readers," she said.  

"His beautifully crafted stories have been well-researched, particularly his feature articles that appear in the latest issue of Wattle magazine. In addition to Indigenous storytelling, Jimmy has thrived on general news reporting, with science and education becoming his key rounds". 

Oh, and she has this to say about him too - he is nothing less than the "most intelligent person I have ever met." 

Now that is high praise, that's for sure - especially for a young high school graduate. 

Image: Supplied. 

Jimmy takes out NAIDOC "Storyteller Award"  

I guess it's his intelligence and ability to "beautifully craft" stories that meant he won big at the 2023 Coonabarabran LALC NAIDOC Awards, receiving the "Storyteller Award." 

"I found out I won the award as it was being announced on the night of Coonabarabran's first-ever NAIDOC Ball on Saturday, 8 July," Jimmy explained. 

"As they announced the award and described the winner, I grew more and more suspicious that it might have been me until they finally announced that I was actually the winner of the award". 

"It was a lovely surprise," he said. "I would also like to extend my congratulations to all of the other award winners on the night and a big thank you to the Corona Times team – Kait Britton, Lynne, Max Estens, and Emma Harvey - who have been instrumental in getting me to where I am today." 

As for his future - we are sure it's a bright one, but he is still determining what shape it will take. 

"I think one day I will decide to return to university to continue my studies, but first, I'd like to have certainty as to what I would actually like to study there. With things like this, time provides clarity. So in the meantime, I look forward to continuing my work as a journalist at the Coonabarabran Times!" 

As part of that, he wants to continue his coverage of Indigenous issues and fill a "much-needed space to cover LGBTQIA+ issues. 

We look forward to seeing what this young man achieves, and we can't reveal our source for this information, but we also understand he loves Taylor Swift, and as that source revealed, "if anyone has a spare ticket for her February shows, Jimmy will gladly take it off your hands!"