Federation Chamber
Tuesday 16 March 2021

I’m proud today to speak today about a good friend and an irreplaceable member of the community in my electorate of Oxley. Kerrie Wilson, director of the Aspen Community Early Learning Centre at Inala, retired last week, after more than three decades as a not-for-profit childcare worker. Kerrie started her career in 1984 in New South Wales, arriving at Aspen Early Learning Centre around 21 years ago. It was the first not-for-profit childcare centre in Queensland at the time and was on the verge of closing due to financial problems. Kerrie put everything into making sure the doors stayed open, setting up new admin and financial systems—remembering that she 'upgraded the building and dragged it into the 21st century'. Until her last day at Aspen on Friday, Kerrie worked tirelessly to access inclusion support for the many children with additional needs who have passed through the centre’s doors. As 85 per cent of the children at the centre are from Vietnamese backgrounds, Kerrie has been dedicated to assisting non-English speaking families in accessing important community grants and education funding, ensuring every child is given the best possible start in life.

She says that finishing up at work was surreal. I caught up with Kerrie last week and said, 'You can now put your feet up,' although being the hard worker that she is, I bet she will continue volunteering and helping out in the community after a short break. Congratulations, Kerrie. We are all so proud of what you've done for our community, for your advocacy and all of your specialty in early learning.

I'd also like to commend another great community-focused effort in my electorate. The Forest Lake RSL sub-branch is leading the way across the country in training PTSD service dogs to support veterans battling the demons of war. Recently, I had the opportunity to meet with veteran Bill on the day his service dog Mya was officially handed over to him. Mya completed 18 months of intensive training with the Forest Lake RSL sub branch's dedicated service dog training expert Michelle, and has become professional and focused. Now, she’ll be by Bill’s side helping him develop a sense of safety and improving his community engagement and social interactions. Mya is just one example of how a service dog can change the lives of returned service men and women. Another veteran I met that day told me that, before he was paired with his service dog, he had been contemplating suicide. The trailblazing work of the Forest Lake RSL sub-branch is not only changing lives, led by Sharon Ford and Steve Ford is not only changing lives; it's also saving them. On behalf of our local community I congratulate them, I thank them and I look forward to supporting and working with them for many years to come.