Jamie Chaffey (Parkes, National Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Agriculture) Share this | Hansard source

On Saturday night, the Parkes community gathered for this year's Frontline Services Ball. My wife and I were pleased to attend the ball to support Birds in the Bush and Ronald McDonald House Central West, who were the chosen charities for this year's fundraising. The ball first started in 2022 on the back of recognising the frontline workers who supported their community through the COVID pandemic, raising over $64,000 for the Parkes community. The second ball in 2023 topped that fundraising with over $105,000 raised. These funds went towards purchasing defibrillators for police vehicles, a new boxing room for the PCYC and a car trailer for Parkes and Forbes SES, and over $78,000 went to Ronald McDonald House Central West. This equates to over 500 free nights for families with sick kids seeking treatment, so they don't need to worry about the stress of finding and paying for accommodation. I was proud to be part of this event that does such great work in that community.

This week is Legacy Week. It started yesterday and runs until Saturday. Legacy Week Appeal is a time for all Australians to show their support for widows and children of those who served our country. Legacy is an amazing charity that has been supporting our veterans and their families since the 1940s. Purchasing a Legacy badge may be a small thing, but the funds raised make a huge impact on the lives of our veterans and families. Legacy Week is a time to give back to those families for those who've given so much. Thank you to all veterans and their families and to the volunteers who serve their communities and their nation.

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