When you hear the word "fundraising", you probably think of a cake stall, a sausage sizzle or maybe even a charity ball.

But 85-year old Pauline Hedges has a different plan: "I clean bloody toilets and I clean them good, too!"

Some 20 years ago, Mrs Hedges had the brainwave of securing a cleaning contract from the local shire for the Campaspe River rest stop, 20 kilometres down a lonely stretch of the Flinders Highway from her outback Queensland town of Pentland.

Listen Duration: 4 minutes 56 seconds 4 m 56 s Listen Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. A Big Country: Pauline Hedges is Pentland's chief toilet cleaner Download 2.3 MB

Since then, this income from toilet cleaning has funded vital emergency services in her area.

"The fire group wouldn't have the equipment we've got if we weren't cleaning the toilets," Mrs Hedges says.

The veteran volunteer isn't afraid to get her hands dirty.

"You learn to accept a lot more in the bush," she says, "because there's lots of things town people would never do."

Couture to cattle

Mrs Hedges grew up in Mount Isa before moving to "the big smoke" of Townsville.

Outback toilets were far from Mrs Hedges' mind when she started her working life in the make-up and fashion departments of a big store in the city.

Then she found love with Roger, a grazier from remote Torrens Creek, and swapped couture for cattle, helping run the family's station.

Pauline Hedges with her horse in Pentland. ( ABC News: Brendan Mounter )

"I've had a good life, I've lived on both sides of the fence," Mrs Hedges says.

"You learn a lot more in the bush.

"Being a town girl to start with, I didn't think I'd do half the things I've done when I came out here."

'Gadgets no-one knew existed'

For the 300-strong population of Pentland, this has been a welcome turn of events.

"Pauline is really essential in a place like Pentland," says long-time SES and RFS volunteer Tommy Hytch.

"If you want to get something off the ground … get Pauline behind you."

"If you want to get something done in Pentland, talk to Pauline," says fellow volunteer Tommy Hytch. ( ABC News: Brendan Mounter )

Mrs Hedges served with the local fire brigade for 25 years, holding the rank of first officer in charge. Now, she decks them out with life-saving tools.

"Look at the Flying Doctors, they've got gadgets no-one knew existed until Pauline got them," Tommy Mr Hytch says.

"We've probably got the best fire and SES outfit in Queensland as far as equipment goes, Pauline was one of the instigators of getting this stuff," says fellow volunteer Len Fooks.

Before she became Pentland's Chief Toilet Cleaner, Mrs Hedges attended countless accidents along the busy highway as an SES first-responder.

"I know for a fact that Pauline has saved at least three people's lives.

"They'd never be alive today without Pauline's first-class first aid treatment," Mr Hytch says.

Pauline served with the local fire and emergency brigade for 25 years, and is still raising money for equipment. ( Supplied )

'She just sorts it out'

Mrs Hedges still gets visits from the travellers who owe her their life.

"Some of them have given me presents … one of the men calls me an angel which is bloody beautiful," Mrs Hedges says.

Five years after retiring from the local emergency services, Mrs Hedges still supports the Royal Flying Doctors Service during their monthly remote clinics.

She taxis the medical teams between the airstrip and local hall, makes sure they are well-fed and even unloads the gear.

"She just sorts it all out — if we say, 'we need a new light' or 'the bed's not working', whatever's going on — she'll make it happen," RFDS doctor Kerry Jones says.

"She embodies the country woman to me, the one who says 'ok, this needs to be done, I'll do it.'"

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