Daniel Mulino (Fraser, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to acknowledge the important role that the Australian Vietnamese Women's Association plays in the Fraser community. The Australian Vietnamese Women's Association assists with the settlement and welfare needs of Vietnamese-speaking refugees and migrants in Victoria. It provides a very broad range of services from playgroups to training and aged care. Since its foundation in 1983, the AVWA has grown to an organisation of over 200 staff and has assisted countless Victorians. It continues to deliver extraordinary services to the Fraser community.

This impact is testament to the leadership of Cam Nguyen, the founder and full-time CEO and secretary of the AVWA. Cam and her family came to Australia in 1975 as refugees. Her leadership and community service over nearly five decades in Australia saw her named Victorian Senior Citizen of the Year in 2021. Congratulations on that well-deserved award! I also acknowledge Thanh-Kham Tran-Dang, the president of the AVWA, another senior official of that organisation who has given service over many, many years to the Victorian community. As the member for Fraser, a constituency where so many of the AVWA's members live and where so many of their services are delivered, I want to acknowledge in this House Cam and Kham for their work. Thank you to both of you and to the AVWA for your service to the Australian Vietnamese community, and thank you for contributing so much to the Fraser community.