Mr MATT KEAN ( Hornsby ) ( 13:20 ): Jan Thomas has always remarked that Hornsby is the place where she has done most of her community service. Today I pay tribute to her, a remarkable woman who has dedicated her life to the St John Ambulance. Jan enrolled her three children as cadets in 1980 and found herself assisting the Hornsby Cadet Division until she joined in 1981. From that time, Jan was heavily involved on a weekly basis for the next 25 years. The question is: What has Jan not done in the St John Ambulance? During her service Jan helped with the community care branch and involved herself in the program to aid literacy. She also joined the ophthalmic branch.
Though Jan became President of the Hornsby Cadet Division of the St John Ambulance, this did not prevent her from involving herself with founding the Sydney Youth Musical Theatre in Hornsby during the 1970s, giving young people an outlet for their musical talents. Jan lost her father, Dr Bernie Hindmarsh, in 1943 when the Australian hospital ship Centaur was torpedoed. In 1993 she recognised the fragmentation of community groups commemorating the 268 individuals lost on the Centaur, so she founded the 2/3 AHS Centaur Association, which connects the individuals affected. Jan's long community service has not gone unrecognised. She was honoured with an Order of Australia in the 2009 Queen's birthday honours list. Today we honour Jan's remarkable contributions to Hornsby and thank her for her life's devotion to the youth of Hornsby.
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