Mr MATT KEAN (Hornsby) [12.14 p.m.]: I am delighted to acknowledge in this House the work of Barry Palmer, a truly inspirational former Hornsby resident of mine. Many members in this place know of Mr Palmer; recently he was elected Australia's first Lions Club International President.
It is an enormous achievement and one we are very proud of. Mr Palmer returned to Hornsby for the first time after being elected in July as Australia's first Lions Club International President. This achievement will hold special significance in the hearts and minds of Lions Club members across the nation after waiting 96 long years to see an Australian finally lead their world-renowned international organisation. Such an accomplishment is rare when one considers the over 1.35 million Lions Club members around the globe in 207 countries. I take this opportunity to pay tribute to and acknowledge the terrific job of the parliamentary Lions Club, led by the member for Myall Lakes. Recently, it held a wonderful function to raise money for the most vulnerable in our community.
It gives me great pride to know Mr Palmer will be representing the Hornsby shire on the world stage while proudly flying the Australian flag. Mr Palmer is a great role model for our community and the younger generations to look up to for inspiration. This international appointment for Mr Palmer did not come overnight; it resulted from 37 years of hard work, toil and dedication. I am sure he has attended countless meetings and fundraising events, not just in the Hornsby shire but throughout Sydney, across New South Wales, across the country and now across the globe. Mr Palmer has been a member of the Hornsby Lions Club since 1976 and has held many different roles within the organisation, including club president, zone chairperson, cabinet secretary, cabinet treasurer and district governor. He has served on numerous committees and was the host committee chairperson for the 2010 Lions Clubs International Convention in Sydney.
In addition to his Lions activities, Mr Palmer is a recipient of the Order of Australia medal, a winner of the Australian Childhood Cancer Research Award and holds a contribution award of the Spastic Centre of New South Wales. Previously, he volunteered at the Sydney Olympics and also was a member of the Australian Paralympic Committee. Along with my friend the new mayor of Hornsby Council, Steve Russell, who is doing a fabulous job representing our shire, I was fortunate to meet Mr Palmer during his brief visit to Hornsby last month at a council luncheon held in his honour. I was impressed with his energy and tenacity for the high-pressure role that will see him fly around the world living out of a suitcase for the next 12 months. Mr Palmer told me he was thoroughly enjoying his new role at Lions International despite a demanding schedule. He hopes to use his time as president to grow the Lions organisation, expand its worldwide services and successfully implement a microfinance foundation in rural India.
These reforms are fantastic news to disadvantaged communities around the world that depend on critical funding for town infrastructure, education assistance and essential health programs. Since his election, Mr Palmer has visited four continents in three months to get a better understanding of where future aid and investment is needed. I thank Mr Palmer for all his charitable aid efforts in helping to make the world a better place. He is truly making a difference. International organisations such as Lions play a critical role in assisting governments around the world to reach those in need. After a one-year set term as president, Mr Palmer will take up the chair role with Lions International's Humanitarian Foundation. This also will be an exciting challenge for Mr Palmer as he will be tasked with the responsibility of helping war-ravaged nations in the Middle East, such as Syria, Iraq and Egypt.
Mr Palmer has adopted the motto "Follow your dream" for his presidential term and said he would like to make humanitarian dreams a reality. This new motto will be passed on to the 1.35 million Lions Club members to help improve their community locally, nationally and globally. Using this motto, Mr Palmer hopes to build on Lions International's greatest strengths of recognising a problem and working with others to find a solution. I take this opportunity on behalf of my Hornsby community, and, indeed, on behalf of all of us who serve in Parliament, to wish Barry Palmer and his wife, Anne, all the success in his term as president. It is a demanding role but provides the opportunity to make a tremendous difference to the lives of those who most desperately need it. Barry Palmer is an outstanding example of someone in our community who is changing people's lives for the better. I encourage everyone, whether or not they are Lions members, to use Barry Palmer's example to make a difference and encourage others to follow their dreams to make the most of their own God-given gifts. That is how we will make this world a better place.
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