Paul Scarr (Queensland, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise tonight to acknowledge and express my deep appreciation to two faith based community organisations in the Ipswich-Springfield region who are doing wonderful work to assist Queenslanders who are suffering during the coronavirus pandemic. They're doing that great Australian thing of reaching out and extending a helping hand to people in need. The first of those organisations is a wonderful organisation called the Westside Community Care Network. They're the charity arm of the Springfield Christian Family, led by a wonderful Australian by the name of Pastor Phil Cutcliffe. I had the pleasure of visiting their establishment and seeing firsthand the great work they're doing in distributing groceries, blankets, warm clothing and second-hand goods to people in need during the coronavirus pandemic, and it was absolutely heartwarming.

One of the things that I took away during that visit was an expression that they use: 'pay it forward'. What that means is that if you do someone a good deed and they seek to repay you, then you say to that person: 'No, don't repay me; pay it forward—help someone else. I've helped you; now you help someone else. Pay it forward.' It's a wonderful concept, and perhaps the best compliment I could pay to Pastor Phil Cutcliffe and the wonderful volunteers at Westside Community Care network is that I've actually been reflecting on that concept and how it could be applied in my own life. It's just a wonderful concept.

Another thing which I took away from the visit was the wonderful positive energy that was there and the wonderful group of volunteers. One of their volunteers had actually previously received help from Westside Community Care network, and that's a great example of that 'pay it forward' concept of helping people once you've been helped yourself. I'd like to name some of the volunteers I met on the day. They're wonderful people, all of them: Cherie Horwood, Yvette Atkins, June Johnson, Tasha Tutagalevao, Rhonda Lawson, Celine Dew, Helen Dew, Colin Lacassie, Tamahana Johnston—just wonderful, wonderful people. I think they were all, from my perspective, summed up in a conversation I had with Colin. Col told me how he'd actually helped his community, which was hit hard by the floods in Brisbane a number of years ago now, and that, on one occasion, there were some political leaders and journalists who wanted to come along and do some media with Col, and Col said: 'No. I'm not going to do media with you, because it's not about me; it's about the community.' He's just a wonderful, wonderful human being, as they all are wonderful, wonderful people.

Pastor Phil Cutcliffe I think summed up the philosophy of Westside Community Care network when he said: 'We try to show unconditional love, not just to people that we know but to anyone.' I saw that in practice, and I saw what it meant to the people who went to Westside Community Care network for assistance, and I really do express my deep appreciation to them.

The second organisation I visited was Cityhope Care, which is led by Pastor Mark Edwards, the senior minister of Cityhope Church. During the coronavirus pandemic, they have been providing 'Hampers of Hope'—emergency hampers. When I entered into the Cityhope Church, there was a very high wall and it was covered with these hampers. It was extraordinarily impressive. There were dozens and dozens of hampers. They told me that they had been sending out over 100 hampers, distributed through their agency partners, each week during the coronavirus pandemic—100 hampers a week. Each hamper is specifically tailored to meet the needs of the family or group receiving it and contains various food items, alongside additional supplies such as nappies, baby food, pet food, and even some basic household appliances. Each month they're sending out between $7,000 and $15,000 worth of goods to those who need them.

It's not the first time that Cityhope Care has been helping people in need. They have a wonderful project where they have domestic and family violence packs, and they showed me these packs. In conjunction with the Queensland police, if there's a family that's impacted by domestic violence, they provide these packs to the police and the police provide them to the mothers and kids who have fled a domestic violence situation. It actually gives them a bit of confidence and a bit of hope, because it's specifically tailored to the situation of each family. They'll have a pack for a lady who's in distress who has small toddlers, and they'll have a pack tailored in particular for an older lady in the same situation. They told me that the impact of these domestic and family violence packs is just extraordinary, in terms of giving people hope and confidence. I would like to pay my respects, and pay tribute, to all of the people who I met—many being volunteers—at Cityhope Care, led, as I said, by the marvellous Pastor Mark Edwards. There was also Pastor Ryan Germain, who is the Ripley Campus pastor; Sarah Doherty, general manager and executive assistant to the office of the senior minister; Glenda Coxeter, who is the manager of Cityhope Care; Amanda McLeod, who is the Hampers of Hope team leader; and two wonderful volunteers who were there when I visited. They reminded me of Colin, who I had met at the Westside Community Care Network, and their names are Russell Wilks and Sallyanne Wilks. You really do know that you've met a fabulous volunteer when the leader of the organisation takes you aside and whispers in your ear: 'You know, Paul, they just keep turning up, and sometimes we need to tell them, "You need to go home and rest; you've just been here too long, and you need to go home and rest." But they won't rest until the job is done.' Russell Wilks and Sallyanne Wilks, I congratulate you for all of your efforts.

So, at the time of this coronavirus pandemic, I never cease to be inspired by all of the wonderful community organisations—in this case two faith based community organisations in the Ipswich-Ripley-Springfield area—who are doing wonderful work extending a helping hand to their fellow Australians and representing all that is good about Australia.

Senate adjourned at 22:16