Local heroes thanked on Australia Day

Four local achievers were thanked for their efforts in making the community a better place with awards at the City of Whittlesea's annual Australia Day celebration.

Mayor Emilia Lisa Sterjova thanked the award recipients for their contributions.

"These awards recognise the outstanding service of residents who have made a valuable contribution to our community,” she said.

• Life-long volunteer Alan Roberts was named Citizen of the Year for his efforts volunteering with Whittlesea Community Connections. Alan assists community members with any queries they have and provides community related information to thousands of individuals. By volunteering in this role, he supports the community in accessing appropriate and integrated services and resources. 
• Year 12 student Vivian Ly was named Young Citizen of the Year as a tireless champion for social justice. At her school she is a member of the Be More Social Justice team. As a part of this team, Vivian has fundraised for the homeless by selling cookies and hot chocolate during recess. Vivian also helped put together a Fair Trade Expo where the group promoted the value of buying fair trade to educate the College community on the issues of human trafficking and product training. Vivian also assists to support asylum seekers through fundraising activities, and she developed a sausage sizzle with a difference to highlight the plight of asylum seekers.
• Ray Rosales was named Senior Citizen of the Year for his work with the CFA. He has attended incidents, emergencies and fires and helps to protect the community, property and assets across Victoria and sometimes interstate. He is heavily involved with the fire brigade’s fundraising activities. Ray has been instrumental in the introduction of an initiative with the fire brigade called ‘Breakfast with a Firefighter’ which assists in connecting the community and CFA. Ray has also volunteered for organisations such as St Vincent de Paul Society and Christ the Light Catholic Parish. Through all of his volunteer work, he continues to show commitment to improving the lives of others.
• Dalal Sleiman was awarded the Access and Inclusion Citizen of the Year award for his many years spent volunteering for various associations such as AT Refugee Legal and Refugee Council of Australia. In her current work role as a Settlement Worker and Migration Agent, she assists new migrants and refugees to resettle in Australia. Dalal established the Australian Chaldean Family Welfare (ACFW) almost five years ago where she organises fortnightly meetings and arranges for guest speakers to provide information to the community on settlement services and mainstream services.