Luke Beard takes up the opportunity to honour his grandparents by submitting a nomination to ‘Name a Street at Warralily’.
A soon to be resident of Warralily, Mr Beard has nominated his Nanna, Patricia Beard OAM, a disability advocate in Geelong for over 45 years and his Pop, Bruce Beard, who sadly passed away a year ago.
Patricia has dedicated her life to her ten children and to working with disabled people and their families. When Patricia’s tenth child was born with disabilities Patricia threw herself into bettering the care provided for people with disabilities and their families in the region.
Patricia’s work for Shannon Park (SCOPE) and Gateways Support Services has made a significant difference to the services available for the disabled community in Geelong today. Pat was the driving force behind the Interchange (Respite) Program after recognising that carers of disabled people and other family members had special needs too.
In 2006 Patricia was awarded an Order of Australia Medal for services to the community of Geelong through support for people with disabilities and their families.
Luke Beard said that his family has lived in Geelong for over 60 years and he will always have fond memories of the area.
"The honor of having a street named after the family and in recognition of my Nanna and Pop would be unbelievable." said Luke.
Warralily at Armstrong Creek launched the initiative at the start of the month, seeking people to recognise those who have strong ties with the area or who have made a significant contribution of some kind to the region.
Melissa Tilley, Warralily Marketing Manager said that it is exciting to receive nominations celebrating locals, like Patricia Beard, who have made their mark in the community.
“We are sure there will be many people in the community who would be delighted to see their name remembered in this way and urge people to think about locals who have made a difference and show your appreciation,” she said.
“We only have a short time left before the nomination period ends so we encourage everyone in the community to visit our website to take up this exciting opportunity.”
Here is your chance to shape the history books. Nominations need to describe why you think the individual/family should be remembered and provide the street name preference.