David Coleman (Banks, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Communications) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On 20 August I visited the South West Voices choir at the church hall at Padstow Anglican Church. It was really good to talk with Gary Smith, the musical director, and all the members of the choir. I had not actually visited this choir before, so it was really nice to say hello and find out a bit more about the choir, which is unique amongst our local choirs in that the members of the choir all sing in different keys, creating a beautiful harmony in the various songs they sing. They perform at a number of different events during the year—Christmas concerts and so on—and have been getting together at Padstow Anglican Church for a number of years. To Gary Smith and all the members of the South West Voices choir: thanks very much for having me along on 28 August.

The Oatley West Community Festival this year was an absolute blockbuster. It was held from 25 to 27 August, and I was able to visit on 26 August. Hundreds and hundreds of people were in attendance. This event raises tens of thousands of dollars for the Oakley West Public School community, an incredibly active and passionate community. It's fortunate to have one of the most physically beautiful school campuses you will ever come across. My thanks go to Chris Chuck, the convenor, and the whole P&C who come together and make use of the very extensive skills within that P&C. I was fortunate to be able to introduce the bands, including the first ever performance of this year's training band. It was a really nice day. Thank you, Oatley West P&C.

Tony Baddour has recently been elected as the St George Chamber of Commerce president. Tony, of course, has held roles as both treasurer and secretary of the chamber of commerce in the past. He has implemented a new plan for the chamber under four pillars: collaboration; economic development; infrastructure; and purification, activation and accessibility. These are all very sensible pillars, and Tony's long history in the chamber will no doubt hold him in great stead as the president. I want to thank Allan Zreik, the outgoing president, and acknowledge the income committee, including Val Colyer, the chairperson of the Economic Development Subcommittee; Luke Kovacs, the secretary; and Rick Li, the treasurer. They are all doing great work at St George Business Chamber.

Hurstville Grove Infants School is the smallest school in my electorate and one of the very few infant schools anywhere in New South Wales, K to 2. It has only about 50 to 60 kids, but it's a beautiful place, and it was great to meet recently with Kym Ferrario, the acting principal. There is some great new infrastructure in the school—a new playground, a new shared learning centre—and there are lots of great things happening down there. There are issues with traffic just outside the school, which we're working through, and I encourage the counsel to take action on that. It was great to visit Hurstville Grove Infants School.