Kelly O'Dwyer (Higgins, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

During the winter recess, on 4 August, I, like many members in this place, paused to remember the centenary of the beginning of World War I. There is no doubt that the next four years, as we commemorate the Centenary of Anzac, will be one of the most significant national periods of commemoration in Australia's history. The spirit of the Anzac generation is, of course, one that defines our nation with their courage, bravery, mateship, determination and sacrifice. I am therefore pleased that the government's Anzac Centenary Local Grants Program will assist local community groups to memorialise this historic moment through the allocation of $125,000 in available grants to each electorate. To date the government has confirmed funding for a number of memorials in the Higgins electorate. I would like to congratulate two local community groups.

St John's Anglican Church in Toorak has been supported through funding of $1,490 to facilitate the promotion of a series of public events to mark anniversaries over the course of the First World War. The first event, on 3 August, was a successful choral Evensong to mark the eve of the First World War.

In addition, the Villa Maria Society will be helped through a grant of $830 to commemorate the war with a new granite memorial plaque in the rose garden of their Prahran aged-care residence. The memorial will provide a quiet place for reflection to, particularly, remember those servicemen and servicewomen who resided in the Villa Maria Prahran in the latter part of their lives. We thank those people who served our society and our community through their service during the war. We will never forget them.