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Monday, 12 September 2011
Page: 9717

Mr TONY SMITH (Casey) (10:41): I rise this morning to pay tribute to two outstanding local scout groups within the electorate of Casey. Five members' outstanding service has been recognised in recent weeks with the awarding of the Queen's Scout Award. As members will know, our scouts play a great community role in all of our electorates. For those who are awarded the Queen's Scout Award, it is a rare honour and one that occurs only after dedication, outstanding service and excellence over a number of years.

It was my pleasure on Monday, 29 August, to attend the Mount Evelyn annual presentation evening, where four scouts were applauded for their recent awards. Those recipients were Georgina Bennett, Georgia Hocking, Helen Mortimer and Christopher Park. Each of them was recently presented with the Queen's Scout Award. This was a great achievement for them personally and for the Mount Evelyn scouts, which were founded more than 80 years ago and have grown rapidly in recent years. With over 150 members, they are now a considerable community force in the local area and in outer eastern Melbourne.

On the following Sunday, 4 September, I was also pleased to be able to attend the Monbulk scouts presentation afternoon for the awarding of the Queen's Scout Award to David Leonard. It was great to see three generations of the Leonard family there, all of whom have played a large role in the Monbulk community and in the Monbulk scouts. To Lloyd Reynolds, Deirdre Lancaster, Phil Rundle and all of the other leaders at the Monbulk scouts, very hearty congratulations on the great work that you are doing and the work that you have done for the community and the work you will continue to do in the years ahead.

To the Mount Evelyn scout group again, I pay tribute to Gary Park, who has done so much over recent years to ensure that the Mount Evelyn scouts play an active role in the community at dawn services and other critical events in the Mount Evelyn community.