Hepburn Shire announced its Community Awards at a well attended event in the Daylesford Town Hall on January 25. The ceremony also included the induction of two new Australian citizens who hail from Sweden and Côte d’Ivoire.
Djaara Traditional Owner, Peta Hudson, offered a Welcome to Country.
Neville Cartledge OAM and Pat Tacey, both Creswick residents, were name joint Citizens of the Year.
Neville Cartledge OAM, has long been a contributor to the Creswick community. He began raising funds for the Creswick Hospital in 1953, and joined the Creswick Hospital Board in 1970. In 1983 he became a Foundation Board Member of the John Curtin Memorial Hostel Committee. He has made an enormous contribution to scouting in the district over his 70 years of service, during which time Neville trained 33 Queen Scouts, an extraordinary number from one Scout group, and holds the honour of being a Scout Life Member for Victoria. He has also been a member of the CFA since 17 years of age, last year marking 68 years of service.
Pat Tacey has also made an incredible contribution to the Creswick community. Pat’s experience as an educator and leader has come to the fore in his work leading community resilience and disaster recovery efforts in Creswick, as well as fundraising for Creswick residents in need, distributing essential resources and supporting mental health programs in Hepburn Shire. Pat works collaboratively with groups and organisations and is described as always having the community at heart.
Mayor, Cr Brian Hood congratulated all of the award nominees and recognised their considerable contribution over many years. “From rehabilitating wildlife, to supporting their neighbours through flood and fire, running community events and programs, to supporting people experiencing hardship, the contribution of our Citizen of the Year award nominees cannot be overstated,” said Cr Hood. “We have a wonderfully generous community, and these nominees represent what makes our community such a great place to live,” he said.
Alice Newitt was named Young Person of the Year. Alice is an active volunteer with the Clunes Football Netball Club, Clunes Booktown Festival, Hepburn Shire Youth Forum and as a dance leader for young people through Clunes Neighbourhood House.
Local band Elysium, which formed in 2021, received a Special Commendation in the Young Citizen category.
ChillOut Festival took out the Event of the Year award, an event that brought more than 30,000 people to the Shire last year. ChillOut is an incredibly successful, fun and colourful event which has grown to become Australia’s largest queer country pride festival since its inception in 1997.
Council will create a new category for the 2025 awards. This will be the Hepburn Together Award, which will recognise and celebrate the contribution of community groups and organisations. Nominations for the 2025 Community Awards will open later this year.
The Hon Mary-Anne Thomas MP, Martha Haylett MP, Mayor Brian Hood, Young Person of the Year Alice Newitt, Gaelle Broad MLC, Community Event of the Year winners from ChillOut – Tom Shaw and Meredith Johnson, Cr Lesley Hewitt and Deputy Mayor Juliet Simpson.
