Every community has its quiet achievers. These are the people who volunteer their time, support their neighbours, and make a real difference without seeking recognition. This page is dedicated to celebrating some of these local legends and the outstanding contributions they make to our community.
I want to acknowledge the extraordinary achievements of 24-year-old Emma-Sue Greentree from Bonnells Bay who has become an international light-heavyweight boxing champion, just seven years after she first picked up her gloves. In March Emma-Sue took out the bronze medal in her category when she competed at the International Boxing Association's Women's World Championships held in India.…
I recently had the pleasure of attending the New South Wales Rural Fire Service volunteer appreciation service at Doyalson. Among those honoured was Neville Koch, currently the captain of Mandalong Rural Fire Service Brigade, who has served on local brigades for 39 years. I have come to know Nev and his wife, Sandy, well.…
For more than two decades, Dallas Rodney Lock from Bolton Point has been engaged in a labour of love to create and maintain one of the most picturesque sites on Lake Macquarie. The Myuna Bay Scout Camp is widely regarded as being home to some of the prettiest walks around our region, but it wasn't always so.…
I want to acknowledge the super-human efforts of a true Lake Macquarie hero, Lisa Greissl of Macquarie Hills. In June this year Lisa represented Australia at the 17th International Para Rowing Regatta on Lake Varese in Gavirate, Italy, bringing home two gold medals in the PR3 mixed-coxed four boat class.…
I'd like to acknowledge and congratulate Assistant Commissioner Max Mitchell on his outstanding 40-year career with the NSW Police Force. Max's retirement was announced last week and was celebrated with great pomp and ceremony as he stepped down from his role as Northern Region Commander, the region within which Lake Macquarie is incorporated.…
I'd like to congratulate Dr Peter McGeoch from Fishing Point on being awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia in the Queen's Birthday 2022 Honours List.Peter was recognised for his services to sports medicine, having worked as a physician for the Newcastle Knights in the National Rugby League for more than 25 years.…
I acknowledge the remarkable challenge being undertaken by Wendy Evans. Wendy, a person with cerebral palsy, is attempting to become the first person with a severe disability to sail solo around Lake Macquarie, a spectacular waterway. On Friday 10 November I wished Wendy well as she embarked on the first day of her journey in a specially modified Hansa dinghy…
I would like to extend my heartfelt congratulations to the newly elected primary school leadership team at Avondale School. Alannah Morton and Samuel Renshaw have won the respect and trust of their peers, and have been elected as the 2024 school captains.…
Many people would remember Robert "Dutchie" Holland taking wickets for Australia in the mid-1980s cricket tests and famously demolishing the batting line-up of the West Indies, but in Lake Macquarie we acknowledge him equally for his unswerving commitment to his local community.…
There are many young people in Lake Macquarie who are doing great things in our community, often unseen and unheralded. The effort of six Year 10 students from Toronto High School who recently completed a 250-kilometre track along the Great North Walk to raise money for the Black Dog Institute deserves to be heralded loudly.…