David Coleman (Banks, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for Finance) Share this | Hansard source

On 11 December, I visited the Filip II Macedonian Community Language School at Peakhurst West Public School. I have been visiting the school for a number of years, and it's always a great place to visit. There's a very significant community of Australians of Macedonian background in my electorate, and the language school at Peakhurst West is a great exemplar of the strength of the local Macedonian community. It was great to see some of the kids present some of their work, reading in the Macedonian language. Clearly, there's a lot of diligence by the students, their very supportive parents and their teachers. Classes have traditionally been run at the primary school level, but this year they are moving to have high school classes as well, which is great news. Congratulations to Done Koncanovski, the president of the school, and all of the other volunteers who make it such an important part of our community.

The St George area is home to a very strong and proud table tennis community. The Hurstville Aquatic Leisure Centre has arguably the biggest group of table tennis players who come together regularly to play the sport anywhere in the country and has, indeed, hosted national championships in the past.

On 13 December I attended the annual wards night for the St George and Sutherland Shire Table Tennis Association at Club Central Hurstville. I was able to present a Banks Outstanding Sporting Achievement award to Jonathan Tan, and chat with other members of the table tennis community about issues in the sport. Thank you to Connie Chan and Simon Leung for all their efforts and to Douglas Flood for his efforts in leading the association. I'd also like to acknowledge Padstow RSL for its support of table tennis in our area. It hosts a weekly table tennis group in its auditorium. Thank you again to our local table tennis community.

A highlight of every year is visiting the Sing Australia St George Christmas Concert held at Peakhurst South Public School. There was a big crowd this year. There must have been at least a couple of hundred people there. Thanks to John and Toni Darcy for their leadership of the group, and thank you to Sing Australia for attending so many community events—like the Lugano Lions Spring Festival, commemorative services at Club Rivers and many others where they bring their musical talents to bear for the benefit of our community. John, Toni and all the members of this very large choir put a lot of goodwill into the St George area. Thank you so much for this year's concert.

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