Today I would like to pay tribute to the Lake Macquarie Volunteer of the Year, Steve Dewar. Steve is an old friend of mine. He used to live in Shortland electorate. He has now moved to the other side of the lake and lives in Charlton electorate.

Steve is a person who epitomises volunteer work and commitment to his community. Steve retired a couple of years ago and, prior to that, he was a teacher at Belmont High School and also Northlakes High School within Shortland electorate.

He is the type of person who is totally dedicated to landcare, the environment and helping other people. When they wrote the model for what a volunteer should be, Steve Dewar was it.

He spends countless hours working on the environment, making sure that parks, his pet project, continue to flourish. In addition to that, he provides support to other volunteers. Steve is a fantastic role model for young people. Steve is a fantastic asset to Lake Macquarie and it gives me great pleasure to pay tribute to Steve in the parliament today.