Justine Elliot (Richmond, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Australian Red Cross is a remarkable organisation that has served this nation with distinction for more than 100 years. I'd like to acknowledge and congratulate the outstanding work of my local Red Cross. Their members are champions of our local community and they generously give their time to help others. From supporting someone in an emergency to assisting an elderly person to stay at home, to saving a life with first aid or a blood donation, the Red Cross has always been there. In my local area, the Red Cross has been there supporting our community through bushfires and floods, offering practical support where it's needed, not just during the crisis but before and after the emergency has unfolded. It's often during these emergencies that we witness the kindness, hope and compassion from our local Red Cross volunteers that really define this wonderful organisation.

The fact is: each year we're seeing disasters such as bushfires, floods and drought becoming more and more frequent. We know that, when communities are better prepared, they recover faster. This year, three Red Cross members in my electorate have been recognised at the Resilient Australia Awards for their outstanding service. I'd like to congratulate our local Red Cross resilience team, which includes Tammy Jones, Red Cross field operations and community engagement liaison officer for Tweed; Marie-Antoinette Rogers, Red Cross team leader from Murwillumbah and villages; and Jasmine Jones-Calvert, Red Cross team leader for Tweed Banora. The team have taken joint honours, along with Next Step Incorporated, in the community category, at the 2020 New South Wales Resilient Australia Awards. The team worked tirelessly to help prepare villages throughout the region to be more resilient communities, through their programs Pillowcase, RediPlan, the Get Prepared app and Business Ready. Pillowcase is a presentation to primary school children and equips them with the knowledge of what to take in their pillowcase if there's an emergency, just so they're prepared. RediPlan, the Get Prepared app and Business Ready are tools to assist residents and business owners to plan for emergencies by getting organised to pack an emergency kit before a disaster event.

The team also partnered with various local emergency services, community groups, schools and local councils to help them also prepare for emergencies. They also developed the community resilience team concept, an idea led by residents for residents—like a phone tree within your community with a focus on providing emergency preparedness information. So, to Tammy, Marie, Jasmine and all those involved, I say thank you. Our community is so privileged to have you helping us. Your successful community programs and partnerships have inspired so many people. I give my congratulations to all those volunteers of the Red Cross for the wonderful work you do.