Lucy Wicks (Robertson, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Last Saturday, thousands of people from across the Central Coast came together for the annual and spectacular 5 Lands Walk. A record crowd of around 17,000 people explored the '5 lands' along our coastline from MacMasters Beach to Copacabana, Avoca, North Avoca and on to Terrigal. The 5 Lands Walk is a celebration of all that it means to be Australian. Along each of the '5 lands', people were treated to a wonderful cultural mix of Indigenous dance and Greek, Chinese, African, Irish and Latino festivities. There is a real sense of connection cultivated by this annual walk. It is all about connecting people to people and people to place. I have done the walk several times and I have got many fond memories, memories that will last a lifetime. This year, the opening ceremony at MacMasters Beach Surf Life Saving Club was again disrupted as we turned mid-speeches to watch a whale breach the surface of the ocean. It was an absolutely spectacular sight. The 5 Lands Walk is rightly becoming one of the biggest tourism events of the year on the Central Coast. One of the reasons that the 5 Lands Walk is so successful is that it is run by a dedicated and passionate team of volunteers. Today I rise to honour and thank them for their commitment and vision, especially the executive committee members, including President Con Ryan, Tony Powell, Pauline Wright and Lindsay Cunningham, as well as the many sponsors, surf clubs and around 500 volunteers who work together to make the 5 Lands Walk such a unique and memorable event on the Central Coast calendar. (Time expired)

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