Bellarine Rail Trail friends sought honour for volunteer

THE City of Greater Geelong (COGG) has received a submission calling for a reserve in Leopold to be named in honour of a long-serving environmental volunteer.

The Friends of the Bellarine Rail Trail would like COGG to name the reserve at 97 Christies Road the Fred Cook Reserve.

Mr Cook was a founding member of the Friends group, which formed in 2002.

He remained a selfless member of the group until his death in 2017, a submission from the Friends group reads.

“(Mr Cook’s) dedication and tireless efforts led to tangible improvements to the natural environment on the rail trail.

“He was a humble man who was honest, reliable, trustworthy and driven to provide a lasting benefit to the Leopold and Bellarine communities.”

Mr Cook was instrumental in the revegetation, and improvement of community facilities, along the Bellarine Rail Trail Reserve.

He coordinated the installation of more than 80,000 plants, right down to propagating many of the plants in his own hot-house.

He oversaw the creation and installation of rail trail seats and picnic tables and represented the volunteer Friends group on several COGG and local committees.

COGG is welcoming public comment on the proposal until March 22.

Visit geelongaustralia.com.au/yoursay to provide your views on the submission.