Cathy McGowan (Indi, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It gives me great pleasure today to wear this badge. It is a CFA badge and it is a 20-year service badge. I wore it on Sunday as we celebrated 100 years of the CFA working in the Indigo Valley. That is my community and my fire brigade, so it gave me great pleasure to be part of the day when NormMcLean, a long-serving member and former captain, gave us some of the brigade's history, along with Arthur Oates, Joe Baynes and Ian Welsh. We acknowledged the work of Jan Baynes, one of our amazing community workers, Arthur Oates and Ian Welsh.

We had a fantastic day. More than 250 members of the community got together and we told the story not only of the brigade over the last 100 years but also the work that brigade has done to create and build the community in Indigo Valley. Clearly it protects us all, it provides training and it is a way for newcomers to get together.

As part of the work of the fire brigade we have also had community meals. Once a month the whole community gets together in the building just near the fire brigade and we celebrate our community. The fire brigade was also responsible for setting up the Landcare group and doing all of the environmental group work in our community. But, most importantly, it symbolises the values and the connectivity of the families in the Indigo Valley that go back such a long way with such deep roots. Together we make our community work, so congratulations to everybody in Indigo Valley. I am so pleased to be part of the fire brigade, and congratulations on 100 years of service.