David Smith (Bean, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Brian Franklin, 'Bodge' to his mates, a lifelong member of the Western Creek Woden Basketball Club, passed away recently following a lengthy battle with cancer. Brian was devoted to basketball in Canberra. He was one of several individuals in the 1980s who put their homes on the line to build the Southside Stadium at Woden. The sport also benefited from his project management experience, resulting in the development of the Belconnen Basketball Stadium. There are countless stories that illustrate the contribution Brian made to basketball in the ACT over 56 years. In 1978 Brian became a founding member of the team that established the Canberra Cannons. In 1999 he was instrumental in keeping the Canberra Capitals afloat, and, in the following season, the Capitals won the Women's National Basketball League premiership again.

Perhaps his greatest contribution, though, was as an historian. He dutifully documented almost every aspect of the sport in Canberra. This included countless profiles of Canberra basketball players and administrators, a skill developed as a correspondent for the Canberra Times and the Canberra CityNews. Basketball ACT President Allan Yates said Brian was 'a common thread in everything associated with the sport in Canberra over the past 50 years'. Basketball ACT is currently discussing how best to honour and commemorate Brian Franklin. He was, without doubt, basketball's greatest advocate. To Bodge's family and friends, we send our condolences.

A great Bean local, Katrina Fanning AO, PSM, has been announced as the 2023 Canberra Citizen of the Year. Katrina Fanning is a Wiradjuri woman, and she was recognised for her dedication to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community. She has been the chairperson of the ACT Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elected Body, and from 2021 to 2022 she was the head of the secretariat for the Coalition of Peaks on Closing the Gap. Katrina also made significant contributions to rugby league. Following success as a player and coach, she was appointed chairperson of the Australian Rugby League Indigenous Council in 2012, and she's a past president of Australian Women's Rugby League. She's a director of the Canberra Raiders and president of the Canberra Women's Rugby League. Earlier this year, Katrina was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia. She also received the ACT Australian of the Year award in 2020, a Public Service Medal in 2015 for outstanding public service in Indigenous affairs, the ACT Woman of the Year award in 2014 and the ACT NAIDOC Person of the Year award in 2014. Congratulations and thank you, Katrina, for your outstanding leadership and ongoing contributions to our broader community.