Jane Hume (Victoria, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Today I am privileged to rise to celebrate an individual whose remarkable journey and contributions have significantly enriched our community and nation. Frank Greenstein, a name synonymous with dedication to community spirit to many of those in the Jewish and Liberal Party communities, has been honoured with a Medal of the Order of Australia, an OAM. This accolade serves not just as recognition of Frank's individual achievements but it's a vivid illustration of the transformative power of embracing new beginnings with courage and determination and the significant impact that one individual can have through service and dedication.

Less than 25 years ago, Frank embarked on a journey from South Africa to Australia. He's a chemist by training, but when he came to Australia with his brother Alan he took on the reigns of Illy's Good Taste Bakery, just around the corner from my home in Malvern. The business was a significant supplier to cafes and restaurants right across Melbourne. Unwittingly, many Melburnians will have enjoyed the fruits of Frank's labour without even knowing it. But us locals in Malvern will most fondly remember the factory outlet at the Illy site on Station Street where you could pop in to pick up many of the sweet treats that were on offer. They certainly saved my obligations to school lunches many times.

During COVID Frank and his family did what so many small-business owners do, they pivoted and began to bake savoury treats as well as sweet ones to keep the business going. And as a testament to the enormous number of friends that he has made in his time here, many Liberal Party members lined up to use their precious one hour a day outside during lockdowns to help promote Frank's new venture, using the most important tool in the political arsenal—letterboxing.

Through his significant involvement with the Liberal Party, Frank has exuded a true enthusiasm for political engagement and public service. His roles have spanned from championing community engagement as chairman of the Community Engagement Committee and serving as vice-president of the Victorian Liberal division, where I first came to know him, and, of course, at a grassroots level where he has been active at his local electorate conferences and at the Caulfield branch. Through these roles, Frank has not only contributed to the political landscape but has also served as a pillar of support and a source of inspiration for many of us within the party, myself included. And, of course, wherever Frank went there was usually a tray of cakes in tow.

Moreover, Frank's commitment to multicultural advocacy—through his contribution to the Victorian government's Small Business Multicultural Advisory Ministerial Council and the Advisory Committee for Multicultural Affairs, as well as his involvement and leadership in the Australian Intercultural Society, the Jewish Community Centre, the Jewish Christian Muslim Association of Australia, and most recently as an executive member of Jewish Community Council of Victoria, where he continues to serve after stints as both the interim president and the vice-president—underscores his dedication to promoting harmony and understanding across the diverse communities of Victoria.

It would be fair to say that, given all this, as well as his previous efforts in South Africa, where he was politically active in the fight against apartheid, Frank has an instinctive understanding of our shared humanity and the strength inherent in our diverse society. In a time when our world faces myriad challenges, individuals like Frank remind us of the importance of community service and the enduring impact of dedicated leadership. His journey from a hopeful migrant to a celebrated member of the Australian community exemplifies the transformative power of service, the fulfilment that comes with volunteerism and the boundless potential of the human spirit to contribute to the greater good.

To Frank and his family, I extend my most heartfelt congratulations on this well-deserved honour, and I am honoured to be able to call you my friend and to be inspired by your continuing work, work which stands as a testament to the values that we all hold dear as Australians: hard work, community engagement and the relentless pursuit of a more inclusive, more understanding and more united society. Frank, may your story continue to inspire and motivate all of us to strive for excellence in service to our community and to our nation.