I rise to congratulate a number of community leaders for their role in organising the Kew RSL East Melbourne/Tramways Anzac Day service, held at the Kew RSL at dawn on Anzac Day. It was a wonderful community event. Over 600 locals turned up. Currently the Kew RSL and the East Melbourne/Tramways RSL are in the process of merging, so there was no point of contact—indeed, point of overall control—for the event. My office had an interesting time helping organise this RSL service, and I think everyone in my office certainly enjoyed that experience.
I want to thank Kew High School captains Elliot Aitken and Will Davey for reading the poems. I want to thank Lieutenant Colonel Reverend Canon John Sanderson for his prayers in the morning; the Hawthorn Pipe Band; Glenferrie Brass; McDonald’s in Kew for donating both food and indeed their time supporting the event—Adam Kelly, Anthony Kift, Tim Holyroyd and Andrew Oxland; Coles for supporting the event with a lot of food, particularly Martine Alpens; Toscano’s of Kew, particularly Damian Toscano, for again donating a lot of food for the event; and also a number of individuals and schools that helped lay wreaths on the morning, particularly British Consul-General Steph Lysaght, Cr Nick Stavrou, councillors Felicity Sinfield and Cynthia Watson; Kew High School; and the Ruyton school captains, Annie Timm and Zoe Boussioutas.