Bert Van Manen (Forde, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

In my electorate of Forde, we have a diverse range of talented, creative, forward-thinking and hardworking people, who we recently got to celebrate and acknowledge in the 2021 Logan Business Distinction Awards and the City of Logan Sports Awards. The past two years have provided great challenges for our business community, with the COVID-19 pandemic resulting in the most severe global economic crisis since the Great Depression. In April 2020, more than one million Australians lost their jobs or saw their working hours reduced to zero. However, with strong progress on the vaccine rollout there has been light at the end of the tunnel, and, as of March this year, Australia became the first advanced economy to have more people in employment than prior to the pandemic.

We know that small business is the backbone of our economy and the key to Australia's economic recovery. This is why our small business community deserves to be celebrated. The business awards were originally started by the Logan Chamber of Commerce over 35 years ago. It has a tradition of being the night of nights in the Logan business and social calendar, with 15 industry category awards and six major awards up for grabs. It's an honour for any business to receive a nomination. This year, six businesses from my electorate were celebrated for their business contribution to our local community. The 2021 major award winner for inclusiveness was local Beenleigh business the Empire Bodyshop, founded in 2016. The 2021 industry category awards range over a diverse number of industries, and this year's winners include AKIPS, the White House of Waterford, MyCity Logan, Transit Care and Laser Tag in a Box.

AKIPS is a network-monitoring software company, and they took out the Technology and Innovation Award. AKIPS has developed the world's largest scaling network and infrastructure monitoring software, which services some of the most high-profile organisations across the world. AKIPS software allows network engineers to be proactive instead of firefighting and to detect, analyse and rectify issues before any disruption to the business occurs. AKIPS was founded in Logan, and it currently operates out of a corporate office in my electorate, in Tanah Merah. The AKIPS team has rapidly expanded over the last few months, and is led by Susan Koch, the general manager—her husband, Paul, sadly passed away earlier this year—along with Nick Frampton and Mark Birkinshaw. I congratulate them on the success that they've achieved over this short period of time.

The event services category award was awarded to the White House of Waterford for creating amazing dining experiences and memorable events. They have a focus on locally sourced produce, high-quality service and delicious food, to serve the Logan community and strive to bring the best of Australian hospitality and cuisine to Logan. MyCity Logan is a news outlet that took the win for media and advertising. They strive to deliver the most comprehensive news updates and provide opportunities to advertise local businesses. MyCity Logan is a trusted source of everything Logan related. Whether you want to read the latest headline, catch up on local events, look for the perfect weekend food spot or local business or search for a good property location, they have all your needs covered.

Transit Care was the winner of the For Purpose (Charity and Not For Profits) Award. They are dedicated to providing safe, reliable and professional transport to those people in the community who have difficulty getting around. Their pre-booked, door-to-door service allows community members to travel to medical and social supports and appointments. They also offer fun social activities—including bus trips to interesting and beautiful locations, fitness classes, arts and crafts, and technology courses—to foster connection, participation and inclusion. The sports category award, which I was a sponsor of, was awarded to Laser Tag in a Box, a business that aims to provide a full day of fun, laughter and adrenaline. Laser Tag in a Box rents laser tag party gear Australia wide, right to your door. Everything you need comes in the box and provides hours of entertainment with minimal stress. It's perfect for birthday parties, sporting team celebrations and youth programs.

Not only do we have these amazing businesses in my electorate of Forde; the community can also celebrate the outstanding achievements of many representatives in the sporting arena. The City of Logan Sports Awards pay tribute to elite athletes and inspirational sportspeople. The awards also recognise our homegrown sporting icons whose accomplishments have seen them reach the highest level in their chosen sport, and this year is no different with another successful year for our sports men and women across the electorate of Forde. Logan Basketball, who are based in Shailer Park, were awarded the 2021 City of Logan Sports Awards organisation of the year. This award culminates in a huge year of success for Logan Basketball both on and off the court across various levels and programs. This is a well deserved win for the organisation, and I commend their players, coaches, officials, volunteers, staff and the management committee for all the hard work they have put in to achieving such great success. It was an honour on the night to see Marsden State High School with a number of both current and former students being recognised for their sporting contributions. Marsden State High School open boys rugby league team won sports team of the year. Ms Bartlett won sports coach of the year and judge's choice, and Ms Neumann took out the sports official of the year. Students Losa Niumata and Connor Gillen won sportswoman and sportsman of the year, and former Marsden State High School student and Olympic gold-medallist Logan Martin was honoured with the golden banksia award.

In addition to these many organisations, there are also the everyday clubs all around Logan that are run by volunteers who make such an outstanding effort each and every year to ensure that our kids, from under-fives all the way to our senior teams, can get out on the field and play their chosen sport. I want to congratulate and commend the businesses of Forde together with our sporting men and women for being honoured with these awards. They have worked hard and dedicated themselves through the tough times over the past couple of years. They are a credit to our community for their perseverance and dedication to their businesses and to their chosen sports, and I congratulate them all.

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