Sam Birrell (Nicholls, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I want to acknowledge a fabulous group of people and a small community that does mighty things. Every year the Devenish Dookie & Districts Good Friday Appeal team raises money for the Royal Children's Hospital. They don't just raise money on the day; they do it throughout the year. They hold raffles, car shows and a lamb drive, and farmers raise and sell steers for the cause. Wayne and Floss Groves at the Gladstone Dookie Hotel put on a fortnightly meat tray, and a big highlight is the yabby racing on Australia Day. I had a starter in that this year, but it's still crawling!

This year they raised $120,000, the second most of any regional community. To put that in context, the last census put the Dookie population at 333 and Devenish at 208. Ballarat was first—well done Ballarat, with its population of 100,000—but coming in second were two small farming communities with just over 500 people. That's a stunning effort. Over the past seven years, they've raised more than half a million dollars to help support sick children and their families. I say well done to Paul Durden and his team of volunteers and the many community groups, businesses and individuals who make such a great contribution year after year. I could not be more proud of everyone involved. You are what makes our community very special.