Page 155 - Week 01 - Wednesday, 10 December 2008
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in the small Canberra community, particularly in sport where they were founding members of the Ainslie tennis club. They also supported and were active members of other clubs such as the Ainslie football club and the Yowani golf club.
My paternal grandparents, Robert and Mary Stevenson, emigrated from Scotland and settled in Canberra in 1928. My grandmother made a significant contribution to the development and growth of early Canberra. She was a strong proponent of women’s involvement in politics and community affairs for over 50 years. She was the first woman elected to the board of the Canberra Community Hospital and in 1951 the first woman elected to the ACT Advisory Council, a forerunner of the ACT Legislative Assembly.
It was due to her interest in politics that she became the president of the ACT Liberal Party women’s branch and an executive member of the New South Wales branch of the Liberal Party. In 1954 she stood as the Liberal candidate for the federal seat of the ACT, the same year that she was awarded an MBE. Her commitment to building a vibrant Canberra community was reflected in the number of organisations she received life or foundation memberships of, including the National Council of Women, the YWCA, the Business and Professional Women’s Association and the United Nations Association.
Public service ran to the next generation, with my father and some of my uncles working in various government departments. One uncle, Barry Browning, was not only a champion AFL player for Ainslie and the ACT and won the Mulrooney Medal as the best and fairest player in Canberra in both 1955 and 1956; he also served as a deputy commissioner of the National Capital Development Commission, the organisation established to plan, develop and construct Canberra as Australia’s national capital.
Another uncle, Alan Browning, was the Serjeant-at-Arms, Deputy Clerk and last Clerk of the House of Representatives in the Old Parliament House and the first in the new Parliament House. He also served for three years as the first Clerk of the Norfolk Island Legislative Assembly from 1982 to 1985. Many of the current and new members of this Assembly may be familiar with House of Representatives Practice, a large and detailed tome that gives greater background and understanding to standing orders. New members were issued with a copy in the past few weeks. My uncle Alan contributed substantially to this guide as one of the assistant editors in the production of the first edition and as editor in the production of the second edition.
My parents, John and Judy Stevenson, who were both born and raised here, have been great role models not only as loving parents but also in demonstrating the importance of participating in and contributing to organisations, schools and community groups so that the social fabric of the ACT remains resilient and supports all who live here. I thank them for all they have done to support me over the years and for the encouragement and interest they have always shown in everything I do.
My patient and supportive husband, Tony, has also made it possible for me to pursue public life, and for this I am overwhelmingly grateful to him. To my sons, Marcus, Will and Isaac: you continue to inspire me to make a difference and I hope that what is achieved in this Assembly will make a positive difference for your generation and the children of future generations.
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