David Fawcett (Wakefield, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise tonight to draw the attention of the House to the Gawler railway station, which over the last few years I have had the pleasure of attending on a regular basis—meeting commuters first thing in the morning to get feedback from them. There has been a transformation of the railway station itself from an old building which, although historic, was a little bit tired. That building has gradually been restored and now houses a community art gallery along with a historic engine manufactured by James Martin and Co. It was restored and moved to the railway station and has become a real centrepiece for the town.

But the real story is in how all this has come about. The Lions Club of Gawler took on and managed this project back in 2000. Negotiations between the club and TransAdelaide’s Adopt a Station program saw this project come together. The Lions Club of Gawler approached Employment Directions regarding a Work for the Dole program, and the federal government and the local government became involved. The town of Gawler gave permission for the Lions Club to do the work and to run a Sunday market to help with funding. So there has been a whole hub of activity around this project. The Lions market, which started with five stalls back in 2001, now has 30 to 40 stalls, generating quite a substantial income each year. The Work for the Dole program has given the Lions Club around six personnel at any given time for a few days each week. This has seen work on the stationmaster’s cottage go ahead. A canopy was provided by Ahrens Engineering and sponsorship by the local business people amounted to around $50,000.

I had the pleasure just last month to go to the opening of the Gawler Community Gallery and to see the fine work in there. The Work for the Dole participants can hold their heads high for the work that they have done there. I would like to particularly mention Mr Pat Mells, a former Lions district governor, who has been the chairman of this station project. It was his vision and his leadership ability that brought together a number of disparate organisations, companies and individuals over quite a number of years to see this project work. There have been some setbacks along the way. There was a rash of graffiti that particularly affected the train engine. They caught one of the culprits, which I welcome. Surprisingly, it was actually a middle-aged person as opposed to a youth. It was good to see the resilience of the community in restoring the engine.

I particularly want to mention Pat Mells, because he has provided leadership to this program as well as leadership in the Lions organisation over a number of years. I was very pleased this week to read in the paper that Pat was recognised in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List with an OAM in the general division for his commitment to Lions and to the community over many years. The Lions Club is just one of a number of community groups that are very active in Gawler and the surrounding areas. It is the commitment and the sacrifice of time, energy and passion of people like Pat Mells that enable those community groups to make a significant difference. I wish to draw the attention of the House to this recognition of Pat Mells. I wish him all the best and thank him for what he has contributed to our community.