FEDERAL Labor MP Anthony Byrne honoured 30 people from throughout the community during the annual Holt Australia Day Awards this week.
The Holt MP presented the awards at the Day of Nations celebrations in Hampton Park on Monday, where a large crowd of friends and families gathered to support the recipients.
“I congratulate all those receiving a Holt Australia Day Award for their exemplary community spirit and endless hours of volunteer work making our community a better and safer place to live,” Mr Byrne said.
“These people do not get the same accolades as celebrities in the media but in their own quiet Australian way they do tremendous work and make other people’s lives better.”
Resident TeHeapera Nikora was among the recipients, awarded for her involvement at the Centre for Multicultural Youth. TeHeapera, of Maori heritage, has been committed to improving the perception of young people within her community in Melbourne.
As a youth facilitator in 2013-14, she helped organise community consultations among young people from different backgrounds. These included a sports day in partnership with schools and a short film made available through social media.
Pastors Graham and Julie Shand, who have been Senior Pastors for over 25 years, also received awards. Each year Graham and Julie help to organise a number of local community events such as the Carols by Candlelight in Hampton Park.
Another recipient was Tim Howell, who joined the SES 15 years ago in the Nunawading Unit before moving to the Narre Warren Unit.
In 2012 Tim was awarded the National Emergency Medal for his role as an SES Volunteer in the Black Saturday Bushfires at Kinglake and for a local fire in Narre Warren.
To view the full list of Holt Award recipients, visit www.anthonybyrnemp.com/2015-holt-australia-day-awards.
For more coverage of the Australia Day celebrations in Casey, turn to pages 16, 18 and 71.
