Scott Buchholz (Wright, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Recently I had the opportunity to organise an event for the Veterans Support Centre Lockyer/Brisbane Valley, taking members on a tour of the Amberley RAAF base. During our visit, we had the pleasure of meeting with Air Commodore Ken Robinson and viewing a Boeing C-17 Globemaster on the tarmac. It is a colossal piece of equipment. We were then joined by Air Commodore John Meier for a tour of the RAAF Amberley Aviation Heritage Centre, a trip through the Australian Defence Force's aviation history. The visit brought back pleasant memories for members from their time in the Defence Force. Many of them worked at Amberley at some stage of their defence careers. Things have changed at the air base since that time, so I'm pleased that I could organise a visit for the members so that the local guys were able to see the contributions of our current servicemen.

The centre is a vital part of the community and supports many defence families and veterans who call the region home. Having just received a $29,000 grant through the Building Excellence in Support and Training program, they will certainly continue to support local defence families. It was a pleasure to be joined by Grant and Yvonne Mullins; Scott, Hayden and Clayton Butters; Ray Maeyke; Andrew Black; Ricky Lawson; Peter Mansfield; David and Wendy Bell; Ray McDonough; Glen and Alessandra Atkinson; Bob Stack; Dave Keen; Ray and Mrs Browning; and Michael and Randall Ellison—brave men and women who served our country. It was a privilege for me to be able to take them through the centre.