Ms SPENCE (Yuroke) (13:57:02) — It was my honour to attend the 2018 Anzac Day service in Craigieburn and to lay a wreath on behalf of the government of Victoria. I joined more than 2000 of my local residents at ANZAC Park to commemorate this sacred day. For the first time, the Craigieburn War Memorial and Remembrance Committee (CWMRC) hosted two services, adding a dawn service to complement the already popular 10.00 a.m. service. The response from the community was tremendous, with over 1000 people attending the inaugural dawn service.

I would like to extend a heartfelt thanks to Kevin O’Callaghan, ESM, and the members of the CWMRC who contributed countless hours to ensure the success of the two services. I would also like to congratulate Kevin on being a recipient of an Anzac of the Year Award from the RSL. The RSL offer up to seven of these prestigious awards each year. This year there were only two, and he is one of only two recipients nationally.

As always, the response from other community organisations was sensational, with participation from the emergency services, churches, community groups and schools. It was inspiring to see so many young people not only attend the service but also actively participate in it. I would like to acknowledge the singers, including Lyla Digrazia from Mount Ridley College, Chelsea Sharp from Craigieburn Secondary College and Lynda Chu-Shing. I would also like to acknowledge both Joseph Marasigan and Molly Robinson from Aitken College, who participated in the service by doing a reading. Finally, the loudest applause of the day was rightfully reserved for when local World War II veteran Robert Stokes laid a wreath on behalf of veterans. It was an honour to see that. Once again, thanks to all who made this commemoration possible and so special. Lest we forget.