Andrew Wallace (Fisher, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This week is National Volunteer Week. Last week I met with some eight individuals and organisations in my electorate of Fisher on the Sunshine Coast who are among the 100,000 volunteers across Australia benefiting from $10 million in Australian government grants. I visited four of those organisations to thank the volunteers for their work and to talk to them about these grants. These volunteer grants are a great example of the Turnbull government investing in small community organisations which help many of our most vulnerable citizens. The energy, expertise and time our volunteers give to our community support those most in need and they represent what Australian communities are all about—that is, giving our fellow Australians a helping hand.

I am glad to see that our local organisations will have this support to continue their valuable work. The local organisations in Fisher receiving grants include the Landsborough Primary P&C Association, which received $3,200 for the training of their volunteers. The Caloundra Family Drug Service and Support Group received $4,800. Guides Queensland in Maleny received a total of $2,100 for the transport costs of volunteers with a disability. Maleny District Sports & Recreation Club received $5,000 for landscaping and gardening, while Maleny Neighbourhood Centre received $1,600 for computer and kitchen equipment. Landsborough Area Community Association received $4,182 for computer equipment and fuel costs, while Maleny District Men's Shed were given $4,926 for first aid equipment and tools. The St Vincent de Paul Society received separate grants in Caloundra, Maleny and Landsborough, totalling $6,500, for fuel costs for their volunteers.

I recently met with Sue Hawes at the Caloundra Family Drug Service and Support Group. Sue's organisation aims to reduce the adverse impacts of drug use on the community and the individual by offering telephone crisis support and local family support meetings. I met with Tony Powell, Maureen Pontin and Peter Ryan of St Vincent de Paul in Caloundra. I think we are all familiar with the great work that they do in that organisation. I also met with Chelsea Large, Robyn Webster and young Estelle Thomson at Maleny Girl Guides, and with Greg Williams and the volunteers at the Maleny District Sports & Recreation Club.

Volunteers are the backbone of every community. It is volunteers that embody our community spirit, who give opportunity to our children in sports, who preserve our heritage and culture and who help those who are most in need. I want to take this opportunity to thank all the volunteers in Fisher for the great work that they do.