The Australia Day Ceremony at Griffith Regional Theatre saw many recognised for their community contributions.
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Alongside Dr Peter Calaizis as Citizen of the Year, Roy Catanzariti was crowned Local Hero for his tireless efforts as organiser of Griffith’s Festa Delle Salsicce.
The Community Project of the Year award went to Griffith Cenotaph update project, with Margaret Tucker, Theo Bollen and Terry Walsh thanked for their work.
It was also a special day for 46 new citizens as they pledged their loyalty to Australia. For Hsiu Ying Yu it was an “overwhelmingly meaningful” day.
“It has been tough, but it’s just been an incredible journey, and I am very much looking forward to giving back to the Griffith community who has welcomed me,” Mrs Yu said.
Winners of the 2019 Australia Day awards were:
- Citizen of the Year – Dr Peter Calaizis
- Community Project of the Year – Griffith Cenotaph
- Sportsperson of the Year – Letica Franchi
- Junior Sportsperson of the Year – Jordan Jasnos
- Sports Team of the Year – Wade High School Under 15s Relay Team
- Sports Council Award-Overall Sportsperson of the Year- Sharyn Millis
- Club Person of the Year – Roy Binks
- Local Hero (Mayors Award) – Roy Catanzariti
The winners of Griffith City Council’s annual Australia Day colouring-in competition were also announced at the ceremony.
Chairperson of the Australia Day Working Party, Councillor Christine Stead, said the standard of colouring-in for this year’s competition was extremely high.
“It was difficult to choose the winners because there were just so many outstanding entries. Our entrants really excelled in creating some masterpieces this year,” Cr Stead said.
The winners are as follows:
1 - 4 years
- Karman Singh Dhanoa
- Emily Nehme
- Genevieve Dunn
5 - 8 years
- Sejal Kaur Dhanoa
- Portia Flack
- Sanuli Abeysingha Jayawardana
9 - 12 years
- Lilly Ceccato
- Kayla Wright
- Emily Codemo
Watch The Area News’ live coverage of the Australia Day Ceremony 2019 below:
Griffith Mayor John Dal Broi congratulated all the winners and award nominees.
“All those nominated deserve recognition for the hard work and dedication to their community through their different activities,” Mayor Dal Broi said.
“Those who were honoured with an award are worthy of such recognition because they are the individuals and groups who work tirelessly to get things done for our community.
“There is a strong sense of community spirit here in Griffith and I’d also like to thank those who took the time to nominate their fellow community members.”
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