Another Australia Day has come and gone and the south west hardly got a look in when it came to Order of Australia honours.
Liverpool had just one, of a local resident whose award was for good deeds in Botany Bay, while Macarthur had not a one.
How can that be? A couple of people I spoke to suggested any local nominations were knocked back because they were not outstanding enough.
Really? Well, I don’t agree with it, do you?
Can you think of five people from the south west who should win an Australia Day honour next year?
Mine, well, it’s just off the top of my head because if I really think about it there will be way too many for a Top 5:
♦ Number 1. From out of Chipping Norton Melinda Cruz took a small local support group for premature babies called Miracle Babies and turned it into a national juggernaut. Wow.
♦ Number 2. Another great local woman, Grace Fava, is also doing wonderful things for autistic people and their carers; things that also resonate nationally but still go unrecognised – not that Grace worries about pats on the back.
♦ Number 3. Wattle Grove resident John Anderson deserves an Australia Day medal just for his perseverance. The anti-intermodal warrior has been at it for more than decade and win, lose or draw when the final decision is made, John has set the benchmark for fighting the good fight. Can’t get any more Australian than that.
♦ Number 4. Fred Borg. As well as tireless efforts every year with the extremely successful 24 Hour Fight Against Cancer, Fred Borg has also been the main crusader for safety measures to reduce the risk of death along Appin Road for motorists.
♦ Number 5. Denise McGrath, the CEO of Kids of Macarthur, is a quiet achiever but that should not disqualify her from getting some overdue Australia Day honours recognition.
Now, who will do the hard yards and put the nominations together for the 2017 Australia Day awards…
