Kristy McBain (Eden-Monaro, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Regional Development, Local Government and Territories) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Today I'd like to honour one of Eden-Monaro's quiet heroes—Mark Ayliffe, who died unexpectedly on the 22 August, aged only 54 years. Mark joined the RFS in his early teens as a junior under his father's captaincy and he continued to volunteer throughout his life. Indeed, he was captain of the Cobargo RFS during the black summer bushfires. Mark had immense knowledge and expertise both of the local terrain and of all aspects of firefighting, which he shared not only with his own branch but as an RFS trainer with brigades throughout Eden-Monaro. He not only served in the brigade but helped train others in the district to get qualified. He devoted his life to helping others. Wherever there was a call for help, Mark was always there to assist without question. Mark will be remembered as brave, strong and determined. My sincere condolences to Mark's family and to the entire Cobargo community.

I am a huge lover of country pubs, and one in Eden-Monaro just took out a top gong. At the Australian Hotels Association New South Wales 2024 Awards for Excellence, the Lake George Hotel in Bungendore was named winner of the Best Steak category. The Lake George was competing against top pubs from across the state, including in Sydney, and I'm so proud that the best pub steak can be found just down the road in Bungendore. A huge congratulations to the hotel's owners and staff. I look forward to getting in for a steak very soon.

Motherland is Australia's first online rural mothers group program, and it held a special fundraiser over the weekend to celebrate Rural Women's Day and Perinatal Mental Health Week. Motherland was founded by Stephanie Trethewey, who was this year's Tassie Australian of the Year. The fundraiser was held at Motherland alumni and employee Kate Brow's Bibbenluke property on the Monaro. A massive congratulations to the entire community for getting behind this fundraiser. Despite buying a ticket, I couldn't get there, because I was unwell, but by all accounts it was a fantastic event where women could connect with other women from across the region while raising much-needed funds to support rural mums right across Australia.

I recently ran into a local celebrity and ultra-distance athlete Dane Waites, who next month will cycle from Pambula to Batemans Bay, a distance of over 220 kilometres, including visiting local schools along the way. Dane's raising funds and awareness for Nardy House specifically for therapy services to improve the quality of life of residents. Nardy House is in Quaama. It's the permanent home of six people with extremely high physical disabilities. This is on the back of Dane's run from Perth to Pambula, some 4,000 kilometres, in 2017, where he raised money for Beyond Blue and Autism Spectrum Australia. Good luck, Dane. Thank you for your amazing work. We're all right behind you. Jump on Facebook and get onto Smile with Dane's Facebook site and donate.