Joanne Ryan (Lalor, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I also commend this motion to the House. Celebrating our volunteers is one of the most important things local members can do in their communities. Having grown up in the community I represent, I know firsthand the value of those in our community who go the extra mile, and who take a personal passion and build from it to a shared passion that adds to the lives of our residents and the fabric of our community. In Lalor, we turn housing developments into communities, and we do that because we're building communities from the ground up. It requires an enormous amount of energy from our local residents to build those communities, and most of that work is done through volunteerism.

In my own history, I owe an enormous debt to such people. As a youngster I was involved in many sports, but one became my passion—no surprise to this chamber that that sport is netball. Through netball, I met and was influenced by some amazing women, who gave of themselves tirelessly and had an enormous impact on many lives. I think about them every year at our Lalor Heroes Volunteer Awards, and about the service they gave to our community through my lifetime. I think of Irene Cooney, of Jenny Toohey and of Wilma Ryan, from whom I learnt so much, not least of which was about service to the community. They led by leading us younger people on the court and at meetings, and they taught us how to serve our community as well. That has grown as the City of Wyndham and surrounds have grown.

In 2014 I initiated the Lalor Heroes Volunteer Awards and have been absolutely overwhelmed by the number of people that we have celebrated. It's designed to acknowledge their efforts. It's designed to celebrate the community that we are building together. Nominations for the Lalor heroes awards are open now, so I urge those at home to think about the people who they see working in their community and giving of themselves every week.

The 2017 Lalor Heroes were an extraordinary group. Margaret Campbell has given 50 years of volunteering in our community, and is celebrated as a Lalor Hero. In that time, she's been a board member for the Wyndham Community and Education Centre, and she's been involved in the Werribee community legal centre, the citizens advice bureau, the Werribee Red Cross, Meals on Wheels and the Werribee information network. She's been a campaigner for Aboriginal reconciliation and justice and she wrote a local history of Werribee, From There to Here. It's people like this that we are celebrating, who give every week to their communities.

Robert Bradley was another 2017 Lalor hero. He's a Wyndham honorary justice of the peace and heads up that group in our community. He's an executive member and roster coordinator for that, and he works tirelessly, purely for the benefit of others. Lisa Heinrichs, a very well-known local, is always volunteering. She is a member of Wyndham Heritage Recovery. She chaired the 'Not in Werribee South' campaign and is a community activist. She also conducts tours to historical sites in Wyndham. She's incredibly passionate about the local community, and she was another that we celebrated that night. Another was Miwako Okumura, who founded Eat my Garden. She's an organiser of the Echo Action Fun school holiday program. She believes in the potential of local communities and children and gives back to the environment and works with NatureWest to foster a happy and healthy community in Lalor.

Some of these people are from sporting groups, as I've said. Nathan Jenner was a Lalor hero last year for his work with the Tenpin Bowling Association of Victoria. He's a local tenpin bowling coach and he works extremely hard with the junior bowlers to support their growth. He's always there to help. Another person that we've celebrated in previous years is a bloke named Wally. He runs Carpet Bowls for All Abilities. I've visited this recently on two occasions over the break. I have never had a wider smile on my face than I did when I shared some time with this group of people and with Wally and his wife, Dot, who ensure this group meets twice a week. When we say 'all abilities', we've got a group of people gathering there, some lonely—maybe they've just lost their partner in their later years—some with a brain injury, some who have special needs. To see 70 people roll up, get the carpet rolled out and get the teams going—that is building the fabric of our community. I'd encourage all locals to think about the people they know and get their nominations in and I'd also encourage them to look at the community grants that are open right now.

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