Born, bred & raised in Lithgow, Makenzie Denley is shaping the future from the ground up—literally.

As an Environmental & Community Officer at Centennial Coal, she’s one of the youngest and most grounded voices in the mining and energy conversation. In this wide-ranging episode, Makenzie shares what it’s like to grow up in a changing regional town, navigate online university, work in a male-dominated industry, and speak up for her generation in rooms where decisions are made.

We dive into everything from community consultation and energy security to mental health, practical education, and what our youth need from their hometown.

This is an honest and hopeful look at the future of Lithgow—from someone who’s living it.

In Episode 30 of Made in Lithgow, Brad and Legend go guest-free to reflect on the stories shaping their hometown. This candid conversation covers everything from a huge maintenance shutdown at Mt Piper. Black Gold’s rise to the global top 1% on TripAdvisor, broken lookouts, blocked roads, and tourism potential bursting at the seams. They spotlight local legends making waves in sport, share the behind-the-scenes fight to save the Small Arms Factory Museum, and issue a challenge to get the basics right.

Whether you're here for grassroots grit or big-picture hope, this episode is a celebration of community, progress, and pride.

Ben Houlison’s journey is everything Made in Lithgow stands for — resilience, purpose, and the strength of community.

After a life-altering mining accident in his early twenties, Ben was stripped back to bare basics — but never alone. Surrounded by the love and support of his entire family — including his parents Geoff and Robyn, brother Matt,, sister Amanda, and eventually the love of his life, Gemma — Ben rebuilt his life one determined step at a time.

He found his purpose again through wheelchair basketball, then discovered new calling on the water. In 2009, Ben proudly wore the green and gold, winning a bronze medal for Australia in adaptive rowing at the World Rowing Championships in Poznań, Poland.

Today, Ben runs a cattle farm at McKanes Falls, raises his daughter Clancy, and travels the country as a respected workplace safety speaker. His story is not just about surviving—it’s about choosing to thrive and building a life defined by meaning, memories, and the people who stood by him.

This episode powerfully reminds us that real strength isn’t in what we’ve endured—it’s in what we create next.

From the basketball courts of Lithgow to the Australian Army and into boardrooms across the nation, Scott Simcoe has spent a lifetime mastering structure, leadership, and clear communication. In this episode of Made in Lithgow, we uncover the story behind Message Train — the regional business delivering custom, large-scale, immersive digital training to some of Australia’s biggest companies and government agencies.

Shaped by his time in the Army and grounded in the values of sport, community, and family, Scott — alongside co-founder Sharon Simcoe — built a tech-enabled learning company that simplifies complexity and turns critical knowledge into action. Whether it’s health and safety, leadership, or change management, Message Train designs training that sticks.

In this episode:

• How a workplace accident became the catalyst for a national learning platform

• The Army’s influence on communication, systems, and leadership

• How Lithgow Basketball and community values shaped Scott’s business DNA

• What makes great training fail — and how Message Train solves it

• Building a scalable, and immersive training solutions business from regional NSW

Perfect for listeners searching for:

• Scalable corporate training & eLearning strategies

• Behavioural science in workplace learning

• Digital innovation in safety, leadership & communication

• Regional entrepreneurship with national impact

• Family-led business success stories from Lithgow

Now streaming on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all major platforms.

#MadeInLithgow #ScottSimcoe #MessageTrain #CorporateTraining #DigitalLearning #ArmyToEntrepreneur #LeadershipCulture #LithgowBusiness #CustomTrainingAustralia

What do you get when you cross two third-generation Italo-Aussies, a tonne of work ethic, a few pallets of tomatoes, and a national TV appearance? You get Frank Capamola and Frank Inzitari—the brains behind the Fire Halo, and the hearts behind some of Lithgow’s most iconic family-run businesses.

In this episode, we dive deep into the post-war immigrant grit that shaped their families’ arrival in Lithgow, the rise of their fruit shops and roadhouses, and the hilarious and heartfelt stories that made them who they are. From driving forklifts at age 9 to bagging spuds for love, to landing on Shark Tank with a game-changing fire protection system—this is a story of hustle, humour, heart, and home.

Whether you’re a fan of clever inventions, small-town legends, or just bloody good blokes, this episode is for you.

NRL Front Rower. Business leader. And just a bloody good bloke.

In this episode of Made in Lithgow, we sit down with Tim Maddison — a former first-grade enforcer who played 115 games across five clubs, including the Knights, Roosters, Sharks, Cowboys, Mariners & a stint in France. But that was just the first chapter.

After hanging up the boots, Tim tackled something just as tough — business. Today, he runs Maddison Safety, one of Australia’s leading PPE suppliers, and now proudly owns Lithgow Fire & Safety.

But the biggest twist? Tim recently discovered deep family roots in Lithgow, including a great-grandfather who played against the touring English rugby league team in 1932 and helped build the town’s early Mines Rescue legacy.

We talk:

• 💥 Old-school NRL stories (and a few good hits)

• 🛠️ Building a business on values and hard work

• 🧬 Uncovering a legacy buried in Lithgow’s coal and footy fields

• 🤝 Why your network is your net worth

• 💡 And why being a good bloke still matters most

When we first kicked off Made in Lithgow, Brad De Losa was our white whale. Not just because of his world records or championship titles, but because he embodies what this region is — calm, grounded, and quietly extraordinary.

In this episode, we sit down with one of the world’s most successful timber sports athletes — a 3× Individual World Champion, 9× Team World Champion with the Chopperoos, and Australian record-holder in the sport’s most explosive discipline. Yet when you meet him, it’s not the records that hit you — it’s the humility, the clarity, and the deep pride in his roots.

🪓 Brad’s Achievements:

• 3× STIHL Timbersports World Champion

• 9× Team World Champion (Chopperoos)

• Set a world record: 4 logs cut in under 58 seconds

• 3× Australian Champion

• 2023 World Trophy Bronze Medallist

• Australian Hot Saw Record: 5.78 seconds

• Competed in 20+ countries, representing Lithgow on the global stage

As we sit back and reflect, it’s hard not to ask:
How is it that we place such high cultural value on rugby league, netball, soccer — all brilliant but ultimately entertainment — while a sport like this, with deep practical roots in our working history, flies under the radar?

This conversation isn’t just about sport but character, craftsmanship, and carving a legacy. It’s about quiet power and a life shaped by timber, steel, and purpose.

In this episode of Made In Lithgow, we sit down with Lithgow Golf Club President and former coal industry stalwart, Greg Guest.

Greg takes us through the long and proud history of the Golf Club — from a time when Lithgow had three golf courses, to the challenges and milestones faced over the decades, and its evolving role in the heart of the community today.

With a lifetime spent in the coal mines, Greg also shares his reflections on life underground, the bonds forged in tough conditions, and his thoughts on the changing energy landscape and what the future might hold for Lithgow.

Just hours before recording, Brad ran into eight former colleagues from both the mines and the power station. When Greg’s name came up, they all said the same thing — “He’s one of us.” That’s the kind of quiet respect Greg commands.

We were both sincerely impressed with Greg’s intellect, his thoughtful and considerate responses, and his willingness to say what he thinks — in a time when many stay quiet in the face of negativity. It was a grounded, insightful conversation with a true local legend.

It is one for anyone invested in Lithgow’s past, present, and future.