Ross Cadell (NSW, National Party, Shadow Minister for Water) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to talk about the life of Alison Davey, the former mayor of Cessnock from 2008 to 2012. Alison Davey was one of those people you meet in your life whom you just have to admire. She served on council in Cessnock—a place where I grew up and spent part of my life—for 29 years, from 1983 to 2012. She was the one who got me into the Nats. She was the person who, in a campaign, got me to become a member of the National Party.

I was a lad growing up, and the Liberal Party had stopped contesting the seat of Cessnock, but the National Party hadn't. I was there, and I ran into Alison. You learn some of life's lessons from very good people, and she was the one that taught me, from her lessons from being in the Lions—she had dedicated herself to the Lions—that, when you talk about people, it must be two of these three things: it must be true, it must be kind and it must be necessary. I have tried to do that. I haven't always succeeded, but I have always tried to do that. She was just a kind-hearted person in everything she did.

Her beloved husband was virtually the king of the Cessnock Goannas rugby league club for so long. He brought up people like Andrew and Matty Johns. There were two loves in his life—Alison and the football club. Her loves were the Lions and him. In everything she did, hers was a life dedicated to service in the truest sense, not just through the Lions but through the council. She stood as a candidate for us in the state election in 2013. That's where I learnt an interesting thing about the perception of people. She was a kind-hearted, wonderful person in everything she did; she wasn't a very saleable politician because she came from the heart and not the cut and thrust of politics. I will miss her. Her funeral is this Wednesday; I'm trying my hardest to get up there to attend. Thank you, Ms Davey. Thank you for council and for everything you've done. We will miss you.