Anthony Byrne (Holt, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On 14 December 2015, I was delighted to host the Holt Community Spirit and Leadership Awards and award 41 students from 39 schools. This was an event that was held at the Cranbourne Community Theatre and was attended by over 200 people. This is the 14th year that we have run the Holt Community Spirit and Leadership Awards. There is always a very good attitude, particularly when we are talking about the good that our young people are doing, not what people often read about in our local papers, which is some of the challenges that our young people face.

I wish I had time in the two minutes and 26 seconds remaining to talk about each of the incredible contributions that the recipients have made to the life of their school and the community, but unfortunately I will not be able to. All I can do for the parents, teachers and others who will be listening is to read their names into the record. I spoke on the night itself. I gave a citation of each of the amazing contributions that these young people have made. I just want to follow up on that and read their names into the record so that the parents and teachers will know their efforts have been acknowledged in this place. They are: Nathanael Brindas, Tanysha Hogan, Amber O'Donnell, Kaelen MacKinnon, Naomi Huynh, Layla Hargreaves, Rhys Bryant, Anna Sorensen, Joel Miller, Koro Sofaa, Paige Sutherland, Hayley Kelly, Chelsey Dodos, Judith Te'O, Ataylia Melkic, Charlotte Mager, Georgia Kristalyn, Nikitha Ramkumar, Angelo Leaupepe, Jasmin Crutchley, Rebecca Wilson, Kaelan Lazaro, Teodora Bingula, Claudia Berke, Ben Tawharu, Michael Stapleton, Daniel Woods, Alyssa Breeden, Shakelea Ringdahl, Adam Williams, Sitarah Mohammadi, Madeline Spooner, Kayla Patrick, James Fisher, Safaa Rahmani, Alana Manoj, Keane Noronha, Taylah Harvey, Ben Abraham, Joshua Jenkins and Paris Dunfield. I read the names, but I wish I could read the citations.

I would like to thank Village Cinemas. As part of the awards ceremony, a couple of weeks ago we hosted a special screening of Star Wars: The Force Awakens for parents and students. That was donated by Village Cinemas, so I would like to thank them for their efforts in acknowledging the contribution of our young people.

I would like to close with this. Too often in my area we read about the challenges young people face and when they do something wrong. Not often enough do we read about the great work that our young people do in surmounting those challenges and the great contribution that they make to the life of our community. I hope that, in some small way, this community spirit award rightfully recognises the incredible role that our young people play. They are our future. I am very proud of the young people whose names I read out. Our future is in good hands with those young people.