Anne Stanley (Werriwa, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

My contribution today is a tribute to the people in the community of south-west Sydney, especially those in the electorate of Werriwa that I proudly represent in this place. I am truly humbled to showcase the wonderful people of Werriwa and their tenacity and kindness, especially the kindness they have overwhelmingly shown every day in the last two years. We are a community from many backgrounds, some hailing from the First Fleet in the early days of settlement in Australia but many more with heritage of 60,000 years. I pay my respects to our First Nations residents and thank them for their custodianship of our area. In Werriwa, people speak over 130 languages from all parts of the world, and we have the most harmonious community. Throughout the pandemic we've seen all sorts of volunteer groups reach out to anyone who needed support—groups like Liverpool council, Marist Sydney Old Pupils Association, Western Sydney Migrant Resource Centre, Turbans 4 Australia and so, so many more who stepped up into the void left by other levels of government to provide everyday support like food hampers and gift vouchers.

Principals and teachers and other school support staff organised home learning kits, laptops, iPads and internet connections so that all of our students got the best education support they could provide. I have 65 wonderful schools in my electorate providing opportunities to so many students. Unfortunately, this year, because of the continuing COVID exposures, I will not see many of you in person, so I take this opportunity to thank you all for what you do for our community and most especially our students. It has been wonderful to see, through the magic of Facebook, how ingenious schools have been to ensure that their students still get to make wonderful memories. I give a shout-out to Lurnea Public School's principal David Martin for all his work supporting his community over the last few months.

As we move into summer and a more relaxing time, I would encourage everyone to keep safe. Remember the risks around water, on the beach and in the sun. Australia has the highest incidence of melanoma, so get your skin checked, cover up and keep safe. The bushfire and storm season has also started, and I want to acknowledge the local SES and bushfire brigades at Casula and Middleton Grange, who have already been out assisting with fire and storm damage. More importantly, remember that COVID is still circulating in our community, so follow the health advice, get tested if you're feeling unwell, and follow up and get vaccinated if you need to.

Finally, I know that, for many, Christmas and the holidays are especially difficult. If you're missing someone in your festivities, support groups like Beyond Blue and Lifeline are available 24/7 over the Christmas break, so if you need someone to talk to, please reach out. Merry Christmas to everybody.

See this speech in context