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If you've grown up in Parkes, you're sure to have met a Cusack or two at some point in your life.
The Cusacks have been part of our community for 90 years and on the October long weekend, something special happened.
The large and growing family had a reunion, their first in 20 years.
Sixty relatives gathered at the Coachman Hotel on 5 October and they came from near and far: Parkes, Forbes, Orange, Victoria and Queensland.
Kevin Cusack, the youngest and last surviving sibling of the famous 11 Cusack children, was thrilled to see his family come together.
He's now 80 and lives in Orange, moving there in 1972 when he was 27.
"Sixty attended the reunion and there were about 25 who couldn't - it's the first one we've had in 20 years," Kevin said.
"Everyone enjoyed the night... It was a bit emotional for a few moments.
"It started at 12pm - we stayed around until 8pm and there were still a few left very much enjoying themselves," he laughed.
The Cusack family story begins in Wagga where Mary and Thomas Cusack were married in 1920.
After raising the first half of their family in the Riverina, they all moved to Parkes in the 1930s where their remaining children were born, with Kevin - number 11 of their surviving children - born in 1945.
There was one daughter Eileen, the eldest - "the rest were boys," Kevin said.
All the sons in succession actually made newspaper headlines on 3 November, 1939.
A print out of the excerpt was on display, along with photos and photo albums, at the family reunion.
While the article (publisher unknown) says '11 sons in succession', two did not survive. It reads as follows:
'A claim from Queensland that nine successive sons in a family is a record in the Commonwealth has been answered by Mrs Mary Cusack, of Bogan Street, Parkes, who gave birth to 11 boys in succession.
'Mrs Cusack is only 39 years of age. Her first child was a daughter and the next 11 boys.'
Six years later another boy was born, that was Kevin, their 13th child.
The family first lived briefly on the Peak Hill Road before settling into the family home at 12 Bogan Street for the rest of their lives.
Thomas worked as a butcher his entire life in Parkes, at a slaughter yard just out of town on the Peak Hill Road.
Before marriage and children, he was a member of the Australian Imperial Force in World War I, he was a private in the 4th Infantry Battalion serving for three years.
Sadly Kevin grew up never knowing or meeting his father - Thomas died in 1944 just before he was born. He was 59.
Of course with so many little ones, mum Mary's life was in the home and she was the family's rock.
"My dad passed before I was born - mum, she did an exceptional job with all us kids," Kevin said.
The family was able to survive off Mary's War Widows pension and some of the older siblings had jobs. They also received hampers from Legacy at Christmas time.
All Cusack children attended Parkes Infants School (Parkes Public School) and Parkes High School, and Kevin said most of them participated in sport.
"Fred was the golf club champion for 10 years," he proudly added.
As the years passed the family grew - some moved away, some stayed.
Here are the Cusack children in order of birth and where they moved to or if they stayed:
Eileen moved to north Queensland, Ted to Sydney, Tom to Wellington, Fred remained in Parkes, Keith (Sydney), Artie (Parkes), Frank (Parkes), Ben (Parkes), Wal (Parkes), Ray (Parkes) and Kevin (Orange).
Mary died in 1983 at the age of 83.
