Page 3528 - Week 10 - Tuesday, 25 August 2009
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which she fought very hard to keep afloat during 2006. She was patron of the Weston Creek Men’s Bowling Club and of Hockey ACT.
Barbara was also, as we have heard, president of the Labor club and vice-president of ClubsACT, both major contributors to community sports in the city. She received the outstanding service to the club industry award in 2002 and a Centenary Medal in 2003 in recognition of her years of voluntary work in the community. She was a great champion of grassroots sports in the ACT, seeing them as a great builder of community and, importantly, a way of helping people stay active and healthy. Canberra is the most active and healthy community in Australia, and it is a position we owe in no small part to the tireless work and contributions of people like Barbara Byrne.
Beyond sport, Barbara’s interests and contributions to the community were many and varied. Her strong interest in business, especially as a vehicle for delivering for the community, saw Barbara become a director of Actew in 2004. I think it is fair to say that Actew’s ongoing support for so many sporting groups, community groups and events will long remain a legacy of Barbara’s time there. In recognition of her services to the ACT business community, she was made an honorary ambassador for Canberra. She brought her business acumen to bear in many community and sporting organisations. As the Chief Minister outlined, her involvement in business and sport was complemented by her interests in the world of culture and the arts and her belief in young Canberrans.
She was a great believer in social justice and the ideals of the Australian Labor Party, for which she worked tirelessly for many years. Pleasingly, the ALP community recognised her contribution by making Barbara a lifetime member of the ACT branch. As president of the Canberra Labor club, it was Barbara’s role to say how long the bar would stay open on election nights. In her time, we had more fun on territory election nights than on federal election nights, but I can say that I saw Barbara on federal election night last year and, even though it was not her job anymore to decide how long the bar should stay open, her opinion was pretty clear.
The last message I had from Barbara was via our dear mutual friend Annette Ellis. Annette sent Barbara a message at Clare Holland House asking if she wanted visitors or not. The message that came back was obviously genuinely from Barbara: “No silly ones,” she said.
Barbara Byrne was someone who got on with the job of serving her community, and did so quietly. She was part of the great tradition that sees so many Canberrans step forward to volunteer, a tradition that makes ours a robust and vibrant community. I know I speak for all members when I say that the condolences of this place go to Barbara’s family, who, like so many in the Canberra community, will greatly miss her contribution but will also celebrate a life truly spent in the service of others.
MS PORTER (Ginninderra) (10.19): It is a privilege, though a very sad one, to stand here and be able to speak on this condolence motion today, to recognise the passing of a very strong and committed citizen and community volunteer and activist.
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