Speeches and Presentations Archives

International Women’s Day Breakfast – 2010 Year of the Girl Guides

Posted on 9 March 2010 by alex

International Women’s Day began in Europe and the United State in the early 1900s, whereby women were campaigning for equal wages, status and the right to vote. The event is also recognised by the United Nations, in realisation that peace and social progress requires active participation and equality of women.

Maroondah celebrates International Women’s Day with a breakfast held at the Karralyka Centre to reflect on the contribution women make to their workplaces, families and communities.

This year the Maroondah International Women’s Day celebrations commemorated the Centenary of Girl Guides, with two speakers from Guides Victoria.

Alex with Billee and Wendy from Girl Guides Victoria, the two speakers at the Maroondah Council 2010 International Women's Day Breakfast

As the Mayor of Maroondah I officiated the proceedings of International Women’s Day and introduced the two guests:

Good morning and welcome to Maroondah City Council’s breakfast to celebrate International Women’s Day 2010. It is wonderful to see so many people eager to start the day with friends and colleagues.

This breakfast is an opportunity for all community members – both men and – to celebrate this special day.

I would like to welcome this morning

Cr Tony Dib and his wife Janet
Cr Ann Fraser
Cr Nora Lamont
Cr Rob Steane and his wife Linda
Cr Natalie Thomas
Frank Dixon, Chief Executive Officer of Maroondah City Council
and Helen Croxford and Marianne Di Giallonardo Directors of Maroondah City Council

We are also pleased to welcome two male representatives among us and I would like to extend a warm welcome to Senior Constable Stuart Sorrell from Ringwood Police and Bryan Allchin, Editor of the Maroondah Leader

International Women’s Day had its beginnings in Europe and the United States in the early 1900s. It pays tribute to the campaign by ordinary women for an improvement in the poor working conditions, for equal wages and the right to vote.

International Women’s Day now unites many millions of women across the world and celebrates the contribution that women make to their workplaces, their families and their communities.

This morning we have two special guest speakers from the Girl Guides movement in this their 100th year. Our first speaker is Billee Henry, a local guide leader for Croydon South. Billee will be discussing her local involvement in Guides and formally introduce our second speaker, Wendy Lewis, Chief Executive Officer, Girl Guides Victoria.

Maroondah Art Gallery – Launching Letting Go

Posted on 4 March 2010 by alex

The Maroondah Art Gallery is located at Maroondah Federation Estate in Greenwood Avenue, Ringwood and offers an artist in residency program for artists to develop new artworks.

This evening I launched Letting Go by Kate James, who just completed a six month artist in residency program, with the works on display being created during this time. Kate’s art focuses on three-dimensional objects, made from unique materials, such as horsehair, to explore the emotion and connection experienced by humans and domesticated animals.

Letting Go in on exhibition from the Thursday the 4th if March until Sunday the 10th of April.

The speech delivered for the launch is available within this entry:

Continue reading “Maroondah Art Gallery – Launching Letting Go”

February BizConnect Business Breakfast

Posted on 18 February 2010 by alex

The BizConnect Maroondah Business Breakfast Series provides networking opportunities for businesses within the municipality and features prominent speakers, who discuss the experiences they have had within their business.

This morning’s speaker was Kristina Karlsson, who formed stationery label kikki.K after identifying a gap in the market for stylish but practical stationery products. Kristina now has 25 retail boutiques within Australia and New Zealand, as well as a prominent online store and web presence.

As the Mayor, I had the pleasure of launching the BizConnect Maroondah Business Breakfast Series, as well as introducing new businesses into Maroondah. Please continue reading to view a copy of the speech delivered during the breakfast:

Continue reading “February BizConnect Business Breakfast”

Opening the VAPAC Managers Meeting

Posted on 16 February 2010 by alex

The Victorian Association of Performing Arts Centres (VAPAC) promotes a cooperative network of performing arts centres across Victoria and Tasmania. This collaboration aims to achieve best practice in programming, management and operations to foster and develop the performing arts across Victoria and Tasmania.

The Karralyka Centre, a facility owned by the Maroondah City Council, is a member of VAPAC and I was invited to officially open the VAPAC Managers meeting, which was held at Karralyka this morning.

The Karralyka Centre opened in 1980 and the VAPAC meeting provides an opportunity to showcase the Centre. Please continue reading to view the speech delivered at the opening:

Continue reading “Opening the VAPAC Managers Meeting”

Maroondah Art Gallery – Launching Studio 4 Exposed and Glass

Posted on 21 January 2010 by alex

The Maroondah Art Gallery, located at Maroondah Federation Estate in Greenwood Avenue, Ringwood, is the municipality’s premiere art exhibition space and features artworks delivered by artists, as well as community organisations.

This evening I had the pleasure of launching two exhibitions, Studio 4 Exposed by the Maroondah Life Drawing Group and Glass an exhibition by local artist Emma Borland.

The Maroondah Life Drawing Group meets each fortnight at Maroondah Federation Estate and the exhibition showcases the diverse work of 12 artists, including paintings, works on paper and jewellery.

Glass is the first exhibition by Nunawading-based artist, Emma Borland, who uses glass to create observations of human behaviour and provide an insight into emotion through her sculptures.

Both Studio 4 Exposed and Glass will be on display until Saturday the 27th February at the Maroondah Art Gallery. Please visit www.artsinmaroondah.com.au or contact 9298 4542 for details.

Please continue reading to view the speech delivered for the launch of this exhibition:

Continue reading “Maroondah Art Gallery – Launching Studio 4 Exposed and Glass”

Tour of Eastern FM’s studios and Interview

Posted on 24 December 2009 by alex

Eastern FM is a community radio station based at Wyreena Community Arts Centre in Croydon. The station broadcasts on 98.1 FM and has coverage throughout Maroondah, Knox and the Shire of Yarra Ranges.

Eastern FM broadcasts to over 600,000 people in region and approximately 200,000 listeners. This afternoon I was invited to a tour of the station’s studios and facilities, along with Wyreena Ward Councillors, Michael Macdonald and Rob Steane.

Eastern FM began full-time broadcasting on the 23rd of February 1991 from its studios at Wyreena and outside broadcasts at community events. Like many other community organisations, Eastern FM has plans to grow and continue meeting the needs of the municipality and the region. In particular the station is keen to develop additional studio space and further expand its outside broadcast program.

After the tour I joined Michael and Rob for an interview with Peter McArthur, a presenter at Eastern FM on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday mornings. The interview discussed the year ahead and looked back on 2009.

A recording of the interview was kindly provided by Eastern FM and is available from this website:

[flv width=”400″ height=”50″]http://www.alexmakin.com.au/audio/2009-12-24-eastern-fm.mp3[/flv]

2009 Maroondah Carols by Candlelight

Posted on 13 December 2009 by alex

The Maroondah Carols by Candlelight is an annual event organised by the City of Maroondah and held at Ainslie Park in Croydon. The Carols provides an evening for families and an opportunity to showcase the musical talent that exists within Maroondah, including Maroondah Brass, Croydon Wind Symphony and Maroondah Singers.

This evening, as the Mayor of Maroondah I opened the 2009 Maroondah Carols by Candlelight:

In the spirit of Reconciliation, we acknowledge that we are meeting on land for which the Wurundjeri people have been custodians for many centuries, and on land which the Indigenous Australians have performed age old ceremonies.

We, Maroondah City Council, accept, respect and have shared with the Wurundjeri people in their customs of welcome.

The Wurundjeri people support the coming together of all people, respecting their individuality to focus on a unified and cohesive nation.

Greetings, it is my great pleasure, as the newly elected Mayor of Maroondah, to welcome you to the Maroondah City Council’s Carols by Candlelight concert.

I would like to welcome my fellow Councillors:

Cr Ann Fraser
Cr Peter Gurr
Cr Nora Lamont
Cr Michael Macdonald
Cr Paul Macdonald
Cr Rob Steane
Cr Natalie Thomas
Cr Les Willmott

To entertain you tonight we have some of Maroondah’s most talented musicians and we also expect to receive a visit from everyone’s favourite – Santa.

This evening is the result of the combined efforts of Maroondah Brass, the Croydon Wind Symphony, Maroondah Singers and Connection Community Church. Council is enormously grateful to these groups for their involvement in putting together this evening’s program and especially for the work undertaken by Ron Moore of Maroondah Brass, who is the Musical Director this year for Carols by Candlelight.

Tonight we will also be entertained by soloists: Mark Casey, Tanya Bail and Hannah Dahlenberg, as well as Croydon West Primary School students who will join us early on this evening.

As we enter the Festive Season it is a time to give recognition to all the people who make Maroondah the vibrant and dynamic city that it is. I would especially like to thank the enormous number of people who give their time and energy on a voluntary basis to help both Council and the Maroondah community.

Finally, I would like to thank all the performers and congratulate all those involved in the organisation of this event. Thank you also to Eastland for their generous support of this evening’s grand finale – a spectacular fireworks display – which I know you will all be eagerly awaiting.

Thank you and enjoy your evening.

Stuff Your Stereo Events – 2009 FReeZA Graduation

Posted on 10 December 2009 by alex

One of the many activities organised through the EVs Youth Centre is the FReeZA program, which involves young people in organising musical events throughout the year.

Each year the FReeZA group choosing a name for itself and and plans a range of drug, smoke and alcohol free musical events. This year’s group was known as Stuff Your Stereo Events and included a number of innovative activities, including the fostering of a partnership with the southeast FReeZA network to provide a concert in support of young people affected by the bushfires earlier this year.

As the Mayor of Maroondah I was invited to speak at the graduation event for the FReeZA participants:

We, Maroondah City Council, accept, respect and have shared with the Wurundjeri people in their customs of welcome.

The Wurundjeri people support the coming together of all people, respecting their individuality to focus on a unified and cohesive nation.

Tonight’s graduation of the participants within Stuff Your Stereo Events, highlights the respect and individuality identified within the Acknowledgement of Country.

I would like to extend a warm welcome to you all and thank you for coming along tonight to celebrate the achievements of these remarkable young people.

The Maroondah FReeZA Group is a personal development program for young people aged 15-21 years of age and focuses on personal and professional skills through the organisation of all ages live music events.

I would like to congratulate each of the participants of Stuff Your Stereo Events who organised 11 all-ages music events over the course of this year. It was particularly impressive to see the group work in collaboration with other organisations, by providing a concert in support of young people affected by the Black Saturday fires.

Likewise, Stuff Your Stereo Events was instrumental in organising a Battle of the Bands to coincide with the 100th anniversary of Croydon Town Hall, the building that now contains EVs Youth Centre.

As you have heard from the participants, the Maroondah FReeZA Program is designed to give young people a practical learning experience & personal development through the organisation and facilitation of live music events.

Each of these young people here tonight have excelled in demonstrating effective communication skills, group processes, public speaking, assertiveness, decision-making, budgeting, writing press releases, stage managing and a range of life-skills. They have also developed specialised skills in the music industry such as how to operate a PA system, sound and acoustics, and lighting systems.

I recognise that the program is a huge commitment and I thank parents, families and friends for encouraging the young people throughout their participation, and for your support.

I would also like to acknowledge the efforts of Council’s Youth Services Team who have worked hard to deliver such a high quality program, I encourage each of the participants to remain involved with EVs and take part in the range of activities that are delivered throughout the year.

Congratulations to each of the Stuff Your Stereo Events participants on their achievements and thank you on behalf of the Maroondah community.

Mayoral Inauguration

Posted on 2 December 2009 by alex

I would like to sincerely thank my colleagues for their support and confidence in me as we enter the 2010 Council Year and I begin my term as the Mayor of Maroondah.

The changeover of the Mayor from Cr. Peter Gurr to myself

It is indeed an honour and a privilege to be able to serve with such distinguished colleagues, all of whom have such a wide range of skills and experience. I look forward to this year as we strive to deliver the very best for the Maroondah community. We need to harness the collective experiences and skills of the people around this table and our community as we consider the decisions we will make in the oncoming year and beyond.

The challenge we need to set ourselves is to ensure that the decisions we make today are not regretted by future generations or future councils. We need to ensure that the decisions we make today are the ones that ensure the economic, social and environmental wellbeing of our community into the future. We must not leave a legacy where in people in 10 or 20 years or beyond wonder about the choices we made today.

Tomorrow is the International Day for People with Disabilities and this serves as a reminder of the need to create a society where everyone can fully participate in civic, commercial, recreational and residential opportunities.

We have a once in a lifetime opportunity to ensure that we get things right with the transformation of Ringwood into a vibrant, sustainable and accessible urban centre. I look forward to working with all levels of government to achieve this vision. Our community expects government to work in cooperation so that we can achieve the best outcomes for our municipality. It is through a collective vision that we can harness the full potential of governments working together to achieve positive outcomes for the community.

Alex delivering his acceptance speech for the 2010 Mayoral Year

I’ve lived in Ringwood since I was two years old, so my memories of growing up are centred around Ringwood and Maroondah, to be in a position where we can shape the future is one that is humbling and I want to ensure that our future generations respect the decisions that we make today.

While the transformation of Ringwood is obviously an exciting project, the City of Maroondah covers many suburbs and we need to ensure that all of our communities and their aspirations are heard and considered.

We also need to be mindful of the many community organisations that are in need of additional accommodation within Maroondah. The strength of a municipality can be measured by the vibrancy of the community organisations within it and we need to ensure that our actions take into account the need for community organisations to grow and develop so they continue to meet the needs of our municipality.

I am truly appreciative of the many community organisations that are present this evening, many of you have been with me during the highs and lows of council and I thank you for your ongoing support and for celebrating that occasion with us. Likewise, I extend my ongoing appreciation to my family who are here tonight and have stood by me during election campaigns and years of council. While the experience of being on council has been extremely positive, there have been times where it has been difficult; and it has been this support from my colleagues, family and the community that has kept me going.

Alex being inaugurated as the Mayor on the 2nd of December 2009

Approximately a fortnight ago the Ringwood Miners Cottage was tragically destroyed by vandals. We need to stop and reflect on the values of our community and work towards creating a civic pride that collectively demonstrates that such malicious destruction will not be tolerated.

We can only do this if we discuss the values that the Maroondah community holds true and I ask each of us to reflect on what it means to live within this municipality. We need to begin a narrative and a discussion about these values and ensure that we hold these principles true to ourselves and to others. I ask each of you to let me know how you would describe the values of Maroondah.

Many people know about my passion for technology. Let us embrace new technologies to lead this discussion and to encourage people to contribute to our community. Please send me your thoughts on Twitter, Facebook, my website or via phone.

These values will not be defined overnight but we should start this discussion and lead in creating this narrative and ensuring we have an inclusive and welcoming society.

Alex delivering his inauguration speech as Mayor on the 2nd of December 2009

In coming weeks I will be asking my colleagues to discuss their visions for Maroondah over the next twelve months. I want to ensure that we have a council that is focused on outcomes and on the wellbeing of our community.

I look forward to achieving these outcomes with my colleagues, as well as the corporate management team and staff of this council.

In closing I would like to thank our outgoing Mayor Peter Gurr for serving the City as Mayor over the past twelve months. I look forward to the future and I look forward to working in harmony with my colleagues, staff and the community as we plan and deliver for the future.

16th Convention of the Lutheran Church of Australia

Posted on 2 October 2009 by alex

Maroondah is home to a number of primary and secondary schools, including my former highschool of Luther College in Plymouth Road, Croydon.

The Lutheran Church of Australia holds a General Convention and Synod every three years to provide delegates the opportunity to vote on motions governing the Lutheran Church of Australia.

This morning I was invited, as a Councillor and past student, to welcome delegates to the City of Maroondah and discuss the attractions within the municipality. It was encouraging to see the Civic section of the Convention open with a Welcome to Country delivered by a Wurunjderi Elder.

I began my proceedings with the City of Maroondah’s Acknowledgement of Country:

Maroondah City Council, in the spirit of reconciliation, acknowledges that we are meeting on the land for which the Wurundjeri people have been custodians for many centuries, and on land which the Indigenous Australians have performed age old ceremonies.

We accept, respect and have shared with the Wurundjeri people in their customs of welcome. The Wurundjeri people support the coming together of all people, respecting their individuality, to focus on a unified and cohesive nation.

I would like to welcome the delegates and participants to both my former highschool and the City of Maroondah. The theme of this year’s convention is Learning to Walk Again and this is a theme that echoes in the broader community, as we strive to create a cohesive and vibrant community within our municipality of Maroondah.

Maroondah is fortunate to have significant environmental bush reserves, including the Mullum Mullum Creek and Valley, which is particularly significant to the Wurundjeri. The Mullum Mullum is one of Metropolitan Melbourne’s most significant remnant bush corridors, connecting with the Yarra River in Melbourne’s north east.

Maroondah is a diverse municipality, with a population of approximately 101,000 residents, including the highest proportion of Burmese migrants within Metropolitan Melbourne.

The municipality is home to 21 primary and 13 secondary schools, of which I attended Luther College between 1993 and 1998. Last year we celebrated our 10th high school reunion at McAdam Square, the local shopping district almost directly across the road from the school.

The suburbs of Ringwood and Croydon are located within the City of Maroondah and both are experiencing substantial change. Ringwood in particular, has been earmarked as a Central Activity District, meaning that the centre of Ringwood will be experiencing significant change in future years.

While change brings challenges it also can deliver opportunities and it is therefore vital that we as a council ensure that there are ample community facilities and meeting spaces within Ringwood as we plan to transform the area into a vibrant urban centre.

I trust that you have a successful convention and extend my welcome to you as you experience the City of Maroondah over the coming days.