Maria Vamvakinou (Calwell, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

The inaugural Corporal Cameron Baird VC MG Memorial Awards were held in my electorate on 22 April. The awards were hosted and established by the Hume City Council to recognise the legacy of Corporal Cameron Baird, an Australian national hero who was killed in action in 2013. Cameron Baird was a student at my local school, Gladstone Park Secondary College before he joined the army and was on his fourth tour of Afghanistan in 2013, when he was killed defending and protecting his comrades. His bravery and sacrifice earned him the first posthumous Victoria Cross to be awarded in Australia. Just a few weeks ago, I was part of the delegation that visited the Al Minhad Military Base in the UAE, where the Australian headquarters of the Joint Task Force is named after Corporal Baird. This is a show of the respect, admiration and high esteem that his mates continue to, and forever will, hold him in. It is the same respect and admiration that our local community holds Corporal Baird in. As a result, Hume City Council established the Cameron Baird Memorial Awards in order to encourage young people to be like him—to strive to be the best they can be in the service of others. Present at the inaugural dinner with Cameron's parents, Doug and Kaye Baird.

I would like to take the opportunity to congratulate the recipients of the awards. The first recipient is Sarah Mackin of Broadmeadows. Sarah, who is 24, is inspired by those who have overcome obstacles in their own lives to achieve amazing things. Since experiencing a period of homelessness, Sarah decided that it was up to her to improve her own life's chances. Sarah has since become passionate about her local community and is an avid volunteer, particularly through the Hume Whittlesea Local Learning and Employment Network and the Kangan Youth Forum. Sarah strives to make every day count; she has a passion to initiate and create change in community development. She will soon commence in a volunteer mentor role to a young person in need through Big Brother/ Big Sister program, and her dream is to work alongside young people in a voluntary capacity overseas. Ms Mackin said she needed to realise that there were 'people worse off than her' and she felt it was time to turn her own life around.

The second recipient is Angela Antonio. Angela, 21 from Craigieburn, is passionate about change and making a difference in the community, particularly with young people. Earlier this year she was named Hume Young Citizen of the year at the council's 2015 Australia Day awards. She is also a highly active member of the community and has played a leading role in the delivery of community events, including the 2014 Change It Up Youth Forum, the RUOK campaign and White Ribbon Day activities. She is a strong role model with admirable leadership skills. Angela will use the award to attend be 2016 Youth Summit in Canberra and she will take with her two other young Hume leaders.

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