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House of Assembly - Fifty-Second Parliament, First Session (52-1)
2011-02-24 Daily Xml
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AUSTRALIA DAY AWARDS

Mr ODENWALDER (Little Para) (15:36): Like most of us in this place, I was honoured to attend several Australia Day celebrations across my electorate in January. As well as the ceremonies welcoming the many new citizens to our community, it was also a great opportunity to recognise the contributions of various residents, and I want to speak briefly about a few of those people recognised by the City of Playford.

The winner of the 2011 City of Playford Citizen of the year was Mr Les Chaplin. Les is well known to anyone who has been involved in any of the sporting clubs which use the Argana Park sporting fields in Elizabeth Downs, of which I am one. Les has lived across the road from Argana Park for many years. He has dedicated a lot of time over the years as the ground's unofficial groundsman. He also spent last year's Christmas break repainting the netball club's 40-odd goal posts with donated paint. He regularly picks up rubbish across the park, puts out and takes in bins and removes graffiti from the various buildings across the park. He was initially nominated by the Elizabeth Netball Club, but he also devotes his time to the same activities across the grounds of the Elizabeth Football Club and the Elizabeth Downs Soccer Club. He is an inspiration to us all, and he was justly recognised on Australia Day.

Madam Speaker, Kay-Cee Hayes was named the City of Playford's Young Citizen of the Year. The field of nominations for this award was particularly strong, which augurs well for the future of my city. Kay-Cee has been committed to making her city a better place and providing opportunities to the local youth through involvement with the arts. After getting involved with an Anglicare youth program in her mid teens, she has moved on to many projects, largely off her own bat.

As well as being involved in every aspect of performance, administration and fundraising, she has also acted as a mentor for other young people in our area. Kay-Cee is also the youth representative on the City of Playford's Obesity Prevention and Lifestyle Committee, as well as being a cheer leader for the mighty Central District Football Club.

Mr Gardner: Hear, hear!

Mr ODENWALDER: 'Hear, hear,' from the member for Morialta.

Mr Piccolo interjecting:

Mr ODENWALDER: No, I have never been there. Apparently they have one in Norwood; I have never been there. The only time I have ever seen Norwood play is in the grand final, and we all remember how that went.

Madam Speaker, other winners on the day were Mr David Bonney who was awarded Sports Club Member of Year for his work with the Elizabeth Football Club; and the Grenville Players, a performance group made up of retired players, was nominated for Community Group of the Year.

Finally, I want to make special mention of the winner of the City of Playford's Older Citizen of the Year, Mr Ray Sargent. Ray is a neighbour of mine, and I have known him over several years as the secretary and a board member of the Elizabeth RSL. The RSL, under his and other leadership, is a hub of good works in my community, playing host to many valuable community groups, including one particularly close to my heart, the Midway Road Community House. Ray's receipt of an Australia Day award, however, was as a result of the tireless volunteer work that he has done over the last 10 years or more, helping the residents of an Anglicare nursing home in Elizabeth East. He spends many hours every week taking residents out, helping them with their shopping, taking them to shows, walks and on bus rides. He has been described as 'irreplaceable', but I hope that his award serves to encourage others in the City of Playford to continue his work in the future.

With the time I have left, I would like briefly to mention the City of Salisbury Citizen of the Year. I also had the opportunity to attend the City of Salisbury Citizenship Awards with the federal member for Port Adelaide. I was delighted to learn that the winner this year was Father Christos Tsoraklidis. I apologise to him if I mispronounce his name, as I invariably do. I have known Father Chris, as he is universally known, for several years, and I know first-hand the effect he has had on the lives of many people in the northern suburbs. His good works extend well beyond the Greek Orthodox community and he devotes much of his time to helping new migrants of all different faiths and backgrounds. He is a worthy winner and an inspiration to all of us who try to make a difference in our communities.

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