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\u201cOn a night like tonight we put volunteers up on a stage and get everyone to not just appreciate what they are doing, but allow them to appreciate what they are doing,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re 52 tiny communities with everyone lifting little bits of weight, and tonight we got to showcase that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nurse and founding member of the Meredith Community Emergency Response Team, Mary Foster, was named Citizen of the Year.<\/p>\n
A resident for 30 years, Ms Foster said she was humbled by her award.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am amazed,\u201d she said. \u201cI was surprised to be nominated. The whole community is volunteers, that\u2019s why I don\u2019t feel as if I\u2019ve done anything special. It\u2019s just part of being in a community, making it strong and friendly.\u201d<\/p>\n
Retired from professional nursing where she worked as a dementia clinician, Ms Foster never stopped caring about the health of her community.<\/p>\n
As a first responder she celebrates with her neighbours, and is there for the challenging times.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are going out to a lot of people that we know, and just the fact that they see a friendly face does so much to help them, calm them and lets them know we are there for them,\u201d Ms Foster said.<\/p>\n
Senior of the Year, Una Miller from Inverleigh, was chosen for her community involvement over 13 years of living in the town.<\/p>\n She\u2019s a member of the Progress Association, a life member of the Country Women\u2019s Association and is an active parishioner of the Inverleigh Presbyterian Church.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s in my nature,\u201d she said. \u201cI worked in the CWA headquarters for 20 years and that gave me an outlook help people and to go out and do something.\u201d<\/p>\n When it comes to her CWA activities, Ms Miller has taken a leading role in mentoring new and young members if the organisation.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s more than scones jam and cream,\u201d Ms Miller said. \u201cI\u2019ve been a member for 55 years and I think I\u2019ve been able to help people. The CWA does a lot behind the scenes. I enjoy working with youth and the girls at Inverleigh are wonderful.\u201d<\/p>\n Dereel\u2019s Minh-Cho Ho was named as Young Citizen of the year. Her willingness to help others, including Vietnamese peers with English and cultural understanding, was a big part of her recognition.<\/p>\n She also takes part in fundraising for institutions like the Royal Children\u2019s Hospital and the Ballarat Foundation.<\/p>\n In the Community Event category, preserving the memory of the nation\u2019s military sacrifice is more than just duty for the recipients.<\/p>\n From what was originally just placing flowers on orphaned war memorials, the Inverleigh RSL Sub-Branch now coordinates Anzac Day services at across the region.<\/p>\n \u201cI used to lay flowers on all the monuments, but only did two services,\u201d said president Mal Johns. \u201cIt\u2019s just grown from there. Because of soldier settler history in the district, a lot of men and women served, and we thought we needed to make sure commemoration was always there.\u201d<\/p>\n The events are a community effort with groups as diverse as the CWA through to historical societies, emergency services and others all helping out.<\/p>\n Mr Johns said the Anzac Day services open the history of wartime sacrifice and military service to new generations.<\/p>\n \u201cThe one thing I have noticed is the increasing number of families and children that are coming to the services. That is so important to keep out military history alive,\u2019 he said.<\/p>\n Cr Sharkey said the people nominated, and those who won were a small sample of the ongoing effort taking place across Golden Plains.<\/p>\n \u201cThe communities here have done a fantastic job,\u201d said Cr Sharkey. \u201cBut I still think there\u2019s others out there that could be nominated.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019d challenge the schoolteachers out there to put forward some of the amazing youth we have in our community.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" A DIVERSE group of Golden Plains residents and one event have been acknowledged during the Shire\u2019s Australia Day awards on Tuesday evening. Recipients included a voltmeter first responder from Meredith, an active community participant and advocate from Inverleigh, a student from Dereel and an RSL Sub-Branch. Mayor Cr Owen Sharkey said the community always benefited […]<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/ballarat\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2020\/01\/IMG_0991-for-web-200x300.jpg\")
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