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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1)
2023-08-30 Daily Xml
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Neale, Mr R. and Tkachuk, Mr V.

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER (Morialta—Deputy Leader of the Opposition) (15:21): I take the opportunity to reflect on the lives of two extraordinary and I would say great South Australians Reg Neale and Volodymyr 'Wally' Tkachuk, both of whom were residents of the Morialta area and enormous contributors both to our local community and the broader South Australian community and both of whom we are saddened from our community's point of view to have lost in recent weeks. I am saddened as I knew both gentlemen extremely well and liked them both terrifically.

Reginald Neale was 88 years old. He was born on 29 September 1934 and passed away on 5 August this year. He was remembered at a service at the Campbelltown Uniting Church, which flowed over into the hall next door. It was standing room only in both rooms. In those 88 years, Reg had an extraordinary life. It was a life of faith and service to his religion and to his community. He was a foundation member of the Rotary Club of Campbelltown and it is on that basis that I met Reg for the first time about 15 years ago. He continued as a regular member, attending regularly until he was unable to do so. Reg and Shirley Neale were foundational to so many of the important works that were done by the Campbelltown Rotary Club.

Paradise Motors is an iconic brand in the north-eastern suburbs, or Paradise Mazda, as it is now. Founded by Reg in 1956, his son Jeff is the dealer principal and his grandson Ben is the general manager. The Paradise Motors brand is known not only for this but certainly for the fact that it sponsors almost every sporting club, community club and charity in the north-eastern suburbs. I understand from some of the people who were at the funeral that they are even expanding westward towards town with some of the groups they are supporting. They saw business not just as an opportunity to generate a service for their customers and an income for their family and their staff—the staff who they treat as family under Reg's model—but indeed a way to contribute to community.

Reg lived a significant life. He will be sadly missed, most of all of course by his dear family: Shirley who, as I say, passed away a few years ago, unfortunately, and his children, Jeff and Michael, and their wives, Jenny and Sue. We also extend our condolences to grandchildren and great-grandchildren Matt, Ben and Tahlia, Steph, Victoria and Cate, Avery and Amari. Vale to Reg Neale.

Volodymyr 'Wally' Tkachuk passed away on 20 July 2023 at the age of 93, having been born on 3 January 1930 in Berestechko, Volyn, in western Ukraine. The Tkachuk family escaped Soviet rule as the Germans retreated at the end of the Second World War. They found themselves in Stuttgart where Wally went to university, and came to Australia in 1949.

Mr Tkachuk, as I will call him from here on, first worked at SA Railways and then had a career in real estate. He was well known in the north-eastern suburbs and beyond for being a trusted, fair and good real estate agent, but certainly his community involvement was dramatic. From 1949 to 1966 he was involved in the Ukrainian choir Homin.

He was a player and then secretary for 15 years of the Ukrainian Soccer Club Lion and then chairman for nine years. His role in establishing Hindmarsh Stadium and securing the funding and support from the government to do that was significant and should be remembered. He was a South Australian Soccer Federation executive committee member from 1965 to 1976. During that time, the acquisition of Hindmarsh Stadium I do not think would have happened without Mr Tkachuk.

He was a member from inception in 1950 of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church and it was at Saint Michael's Autocephalic Orthodox Church where his funeral was held in recent weeks. He was the parish chairman from 2004 to 2017. He was the secretary of the building committee for building the new church, and it would not have happened without him. He was one of the inaugural five members of Ukrainian Community Radio and continued as a volunteer into his 90s.

He was a Friend of the Ukrainian Olympic Committee Delegate when the Sydney Olympics were on, and he has honours from the Australian Olympic Committee, from the Ukrainian World Cycling Team, from the Patriarch Filaret Kyiv Patriarchate at St Michael's Cross, the SASF Hall of Fame 2005 for services to sport and, last year, was the Outstanding Individual Achievement Award winner in the Governor's Multicultural Awards.

Mr Tkachuk, Volodymyr Tkachuk, Wally Tkachuk was an extraordinary South Australian. I know we all extend our sympathies to his children and their partners—Oksana and Peter; Luba, unfortunately deceased; Natalie and Pete; Tatiana and Jacobus; Sonia and Annia—his late wife, Ludmila, and grandchildren and great-grandchildren. His was a significant life that is appropriate to remember in this house. Vale, Wally Tkachuk. Vichnaya pamyat.

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