9919 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL Wednesday 28 March 2012 __________ The President (The Hon. Donald Thomas Harwin) took the chair at 11.00 a.m. The President read the Prayers. TRIBUTE TO MS MEREDITH WALLACE Motion by the Hon. SHAOQUETT MOSELMANE agreed to: 1. That this House notes that: (a) Rockdale City Council has recently engaged its first female General Manager, Ms Meredith Wallace, who has 30 years of local government experience, (b) moving from roles in TAFE and the New South Wales Department of Education, Ms Wallace began with local government on the New South Wales Central Coast, taking up a role with Gosford Council, (c) Ms Wallace then moved to Parramatta Council where she worked with the community and was responsible for tourism, library services, the Heritage Resource Centre and Customer Service Centre, (d) a career highlight for Ms Wallace at Parramatta was having the opportunity to establish a museum, incorporating the council's archives and Visitor Information Centre, on the banks of the Parramatta River, (e) Ms Wallace has spent the last 10 years at Waverley Council working with a wide range of community organisations, business representatives and individual residents to improve the vibrancy and amenity of the local area, and was also responsible for open space and recreational planning, community safety, community consultation, development of major capital works, a wide range of cultural programs, a gallery, theatre and music studios, and (f) other areas of Ms Wallace's portfolio included social and affordable housing, child care, the seniors' centre and supported accommodation for people with a mild intellectual disability. 2. That this House congratulates Ms Meredith Wallace on her achievements and congratulates her on becoming Rockdale City Council's first female General Manager. BAY CITY CARE Motion by the Hon. SHAOQUETT MOSELMANE agreed to: 1. That this House notes that: (a) Mr Andrew Harper, his wife Mary Ann, and their three children founded the Bay City Church and Bay City Care in Arncliffe in 2005, (b) Mr Harper has been a credentialed Minister under the Assemblies of God Australia for some 19 years, (c) Bay City Care is a not-for-profit community and welfare arm of the Bay City Church in Arncliffe, providing assistance to the homeless, the unemployed, the disadvantaged, (d) Bay City Care's welfare programs include food provision through their Food Care Program, disaster relief, residential domestic violence programs, counselling, skills training, and social services, (e) Bay City Care's Food Care Program provides free hampers, fresh fruit and vegetables, bread, and other weekly groceries to over 700 families facing financial hardship in Arncliffe, and over 1,500 people through partner organisations, (f) Bay City Care provided over 550 emergency relief hampers in 2011, and is producing 45 to 50 hampers a week in 2012 for individuals and families across New South Wales at no cost to the recipients with the support of other organisations such as Foodbank, Oz Harvest, Woolworths and Bakers Delight, (g) Bay City Care's Residential Domestic Violence Program is staffed by a group of trained and counsellors and volunteers who on average contribute more than 2,000 hours of voluntary service to the community annually, 9920 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL 28 March 2012 (h) Bay City Care has expanded from Arncliffe to work with partner organisations in Regents Park, Byron Bay and Caringbah, with new locations in North Parramatta, Windsor, Randwick, Greenacre and Cromer to open in the coming months, and (i) the team at Bay City Care consists of Mr Harper, the Director, one full-time staff member, one part-time staff member and over 30 volunteers who give up their time on a weekly basis to assist the organisation. 2. That this House thanks: (a) Mr Andrew Harper and his family for their tireless efforts to serve the community, (b) Ms Janine Harris for her tireless efforts in the Bay City Food Care Program, and (c) Ms Mona Luxton for her devotion to the Bay City Care Residential Care Domestic Violence program. TRIBUTE TO MR K. C. WONG Motion by the Hon. SHAOQUETT MOSELMANE agreed to: 1. That this House notes that: (a) Mr K. C. Wong, Editor in Chief of Sing Tao Daily, graduated from the Department of Journalism, Chinese University of Hong Kong in 1971, (b) following his graduation, Mr Wong joined Sing Tao Daily Hong Kong branch as a journalist, and was later appointed Editorial Director in 1981, (c) in 1981, Mr Wong became Editor of the Oriental Daily News, which has the largest circulation in Hong Kong, (d) in October 1981, Mr Wong was promoted to Deputy Editor in Chief, in charge of the news of mainland China, Taiwan and international affairs, (e) in 1992, Mr Wong migrated to Sydney, Australia, where he worked in several Chinese language newspapers, (f) in 2000, Mr Wong was invited to work at Sing Tao Daily, Sydney as its Editor in Chief in charge of editing, production, newspaper design and news arrangement, and (g) Sing Tao Daily is the largest Chinese language newspaper in Australia, with a history of 30 years service since its establishment in 1982. 2. That this House congratulate Mr K. C. Wong for his contribution to journalism, his quiet achievement and his dedication to informing generations of Australian Chinese. PURPLE DAY Motion by the Hon. AMANDA FAZIO agreed to: That this House: (a) notes that Monday 26 March 2012 was Purple Day, dedicated to increasing awareness of epilepsy worldwide, and people were encouraged to show their support by wearing purple, (b) acknowledges Epilepsy Australia as a not-for-profit organisation and a nationally registered charity committed to improving the quality of life for every Australian living with epilepsy and other seizure disorders, (c) congratulates Epilepsy Australia on: (i) raising awareness of epilepsy and other seizure disorders through national events, national media campaigns and state and territory events, (ii) promoting and facilitating specialist research into the medical and social aspects of epilepsy, (iii) ensuring that the needs of all people with epilepsy, their families and carers are met in the most appropriate way through the collaborative network that exists between member associations, and (iv) producing quality information for all consumers seeking to better understand epilepsy and its management, such information is independently evaluated against national and state or territory disability standards. 28 March 2012 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL 9921 DIABETES Motion by the Hon. NATASHA MACLAREN-JONES agreed to: 1. That this House: (a) notes that diabetes is the world's fastest growing chronic disease, affecting that more than 3.5 million Australians and is our sixth highest cause of death by disease, (b) acknowledges that 14 November is World Diabetes Day and that "Education and Prevention" is the theme for 2009-2013, and (c) urges members of this House to raise awareness about this important health issue. CASINO PUBLIC PRIMARY SCHOOL Motion by the Hon. NATASHA MACLAREN-JONES agreed to: That this House: (a) congratulates Casino Public Primary School for providing 150 years of education on the North Coast of New South Wales, (b) notes in addition to providing standard classes Casino Primary School has a Distance Education Centre, Support Unit and an Aboriginal Preschool, and (c) congratulates Casino Public Primary School for their Aboriginal Student Leadership Program and their commitment to closing the achievement gap for Aboriginal students by providing opportunities to take on leadership roles in the school community. TRIBUTE TO MR NENOS NISSAN Motion by the Hon. MARIE FICARRA agreed to: 1. That this House notes that: (a) on Saturday 24 March 2012, esteemed Assyrian Community Leader Mr Nenos Nissan passed away, (b) Mr Nissan was born in 1951 in Iraq in the city of Habaniya near Baghdad, (c) Mr Nissan started learning the Assyrian language at a very young age, at the Assyrian Church of the East's school before actually attending public school, and he graduated from high school in Baghdad in 1969, (d) Mr Nissan left Iraq after his graduation for Kuwait and on 24 December 1971 he migrated to Australia, (e) Mr Nissan was appointed a member of the entertainment committee of the Assyrian Australian Association from 1979 to 1981, (f) in 1980 Mr Nissan joined the Assyrian Universal Alliance – Australian Chapter [AUA] and held leadership positions for many years, including head of the Educational Bureau and the editor of Nagha, an Assyrian Universal Alliance magazine, until 1990, (g) in 2000, Mr Nissan was appointed by the Assyrian Universal Alliance to be a member of the committee of the Assyrian Australian National Federation [AANF] and was the secretary of this organisation for the last three terms, and (h) Mr Nissan married his wife, Angela, on 3 August 1983, and they were blessed with two children, Chantelle and Daniel. 2. That this House: (a) acknowledges and commends Mr Nenos Nissan for his many years of devoted service to the Assyrian Universal Alliance, Assyrian National Federations and the Assyrian community and the welfare of its members in Australia, and (b) extends its sympathy and condolences to Mr Nissan's wife, Angela, children, Chantelle and Daniel Nissan, family, friends and the Assyrian community on their tragic loss. 9922 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL 28 March 2012 DOLTONE HOUSE Motion by the Hon. MARIE FICARRA agreed to: 1. That this House notes that: (a) at the New South Wales Event Industry Awards, Doltone House was awarded the 2011 New South Wales Meetings and Events Australia Speciality Meeting Venue of the Year, as well as New South Wales 2011 Cause Related Event of the Year for the Biaggio Signorelli Foundation, and (b) this latest award comes after numerous other awards including the 2012 MICE.net Readers Choice Award for Best Unique Venue for the last three consecutive years, Function Centre of the Year and Host Employer of the Year.