Ms JANN McFARLANE (12:30 PM)—I rise today to draw to the attention of the House the fine work being done in my electorate of Stirling by the Balga Action Group. I have spoken about the great work this group do in the local Balga community before, but today I want to recognise the achievements of the group in organising the Balga Family and Community Festival. This event, which will be held this year on Saturday, 13 December from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Brian Burke Reserve in Princess Road, Balga, is now entering its sixth year. Over this period of time, the Balga Action Group have raised over $120,000 to run the event. They could not have done this without the support of the Lotteries Commission of Western Australia—now known as Lotterywest—the state department of multicultural affairs, the City of Stirling and the New North Project. Last year over 6,000 people attended the festival, which shows how important it has become in the local community. This year the theme will be a traditional Christmas theme, though keeping a strong multicultural flavour.
Alan Stafford, the President of the Balga Action Group, has told me about some of the activities and displays planned for this year's festival. There is so much happening on the day that I might not be able to fit it all in in the time I have here today, but I will try. There will be many multicultural and ethnic displays, including Indigenous groups playing the didgeridoo, a local Maori group, the Vietnamese cultural association, the Malay seniors group, Chinese dragon dancers, the Egyptian cultural association, and the Eritrean community group. The City of Stirling will have displays featuring their ranger and security service, and family and children's services will be present, as well as our local police and Neighbourhood Watch. Safer WA, which is very active in the Balga area, will also have a display, along with the fire brigade and State Emergency Service. But the day is not just about displays; it is about having a good time with the family, both young and not so young. We will be seeing some of our seniors from the Balga Autumn Centre doing a performance of line dancing. Kids from the local primary school are also expected to perform.
The day is great because a lot of the activities are free. These include a rock-climbing wall, bouncy castle, gym bus, fire engine and train rides, animal displays and of course the arrival of Father Christmas to hand out presents. Father Christmas has a habit of arriving at the festival on a Harley-Davidson motorbike with a sidecar full of presents. I am sure he will make a spectacular entrance again this year. In the evening, the Balga Salvation Army will do the traditional Carols by Candlelight, followed by a fireworks display at 8.30 p.m. The fireworks display is one of the great hits of the festival and the community have come to know and love their own local fireworks. I have attended all the festivals since I was elected, and both my grandson and I have enjoyed them thoroughly.
The beauty of the festival is that everything, apart from the famous Balga Action Group sausage sizzle and other food, is completely free. All the money raised by the group goes into making the event the huge success that it is. Alan Stafford, Keith Merritt and the other members of the organising committee do a superhuman job in organising this huge event. I would like to take this opportunity to publicly thank them for all the hard work they put in. The organisation of this festival is a 12-month job and takes hundreds of volunteer hours to organise.
The support of the local Balga ward councillors from the City of Stirling, June Copley and David Boothman, has been tremendous, particularly on the practical side of organising the infrastructure needed on the reserve. This event shows how volunteers in our community can really make a difference. Over the years, Balga has been much maligned in the media and by some public figures, most of whom have never visited the suburb.
I am proud to represent Balga, which is a vibrant, growing community that is not afraid to go out and make things happen. To those detractors I would like to send a clear message: open your eyes, Balga is not a stereotype—it has become a role model to other communities about how to take charge of your future and make changes for the better. I ask the people of Balga to support their community by attending the festival. I look forward to seeing them all there for a day that never fails to be fun for all the family. In particular, for my grandson, who is now seven, it is going to be a great day. To him I say: once again I will take you and once again the fireworks are going to be fun.
