Metropolitan VICSES volunteers celebrated for centuries of care
Victoria State Emergency Service (VICSES) volunteers from across Melbourne’s eastern, southern and bayside suburbs have been honoured for their continued support of communities in need, as part of the organisation’s annual honours initiative.
Almost 150 VICSES members attended Cranbourne’s Amstel Club on Sunday, 28 June to acknowledge the service and excellence of local members, with more than 600 years of VICSES long service awards conferred across the cohort.
VICSES founding member and Frankston Unit stalwart Brett Neve was the longest-tenured volunteer acknowledged on the day, awarded a clasp in recognition of 50 years’ service and celebrated as one of only 15 members across the state to have volunteered continuously since the inception of VICSES in 1975.
Brett’s VICSES Frankston Unit counterpart Margaret Graham was honoured for four decades of involvement with her local unit alongside VICSES Glen Eira Unit’s Anthony Jones, while Timothy Douglas (Knox), Tyler Pereyra (Frankston) and Jarrod Ko (Monash) received clasps in recognition of a quarter century of service.
Clasps representing 20 years of service were also presented to Mark Lindupp (Frankston), Brett Mceachern (Knox), Mandy Caulfield (Lilydale), Paul Ricci (Manningham), Emma Wright (Monash) and Stephen Monro (Pakenham).
A further six members received awards denoting 15 years of service to their communities, with staff member Dimity Lynch, Douglas Hammerton (Whitehorse), Bryce Wickham (Narre Warren), Martin Channon (Manningham), Callum Slinn (Healesville) and Damian White (Frankston) each acknowledged for their ongoing commitment. Some 26 others were recognised for either 10 or five years of VICSES involvement.
The event also saw 13 members awarded the prestigious National Medal, in honour of exceptional and diligent service with volunteer emergency management organisations over a period of at least 15 years.
Having previously received the National Medal, several other eligible members were awarded clasps, with a new clasp presented for each additional 10 years of service completed.
VICSES Frankston Unit volunteer Warwick Grassick and VICSES Monash Unit member Jarrod Ko were each presented the National Medal 1st Clasp in recognition of at least 25 years of service, while Tony Hoeboer (Sorrento), Jim Kokkalos (Port Phillip) and Shaun Caulfield (Lilydale) were presented their National Medal 2nd Clasp for 35 years of service.
A pair of National Medal 3rd Clasp awards, signifying incredible service of 45 years or more, were also awarded to VICSES Frankston Unit pair Brett and Jane Neve.
A series of VICSES excellence awards were also presented to round out the evening, celebrating members and units for their work in communities and across the volunteer cohort to drive engagement, resilience and broader visibility of the organisation.
VICSES Chelsea Unit volunteer Phil Wall was conferred the VICSES Excellence in Community Engagement award in celebration of his efforts driving mainstream and social media engagement with his unit and greatly increasing VICSES awareness across bayside communities, which is believed to have contributed to fewer emergency callouts for the unit due to its broad focus on community preparedness.
VICSES Cranbourne Unit also received the VICSES Excellence in Community Engagement award, acknowledging the unit’s innovative and interactive approach to its inaugural open day, showcasing their hydraulics and other emergency response resources to a crowd of more than 1200 community members, greatly increasing the profile of the unit in the process.
VICSES Sorrento Unit Controller Mark Daw was acknowledged with the Excellence in Learning and Development award, in recognition of his incredible commitment to knowledge sharing and supporting training initiatives statewide as well as his work fostering multi-agency relationships in his local area to improve interoperability.
A trio of volunteers were celebrated for their personification of VICSES’ ethos, with Brett ‘Dutchy’ Holland (VICSES Hastings Unit), Danielle Eyssens (VICSES Glen Eira Unit) and Vincent Ciardulli (VICSES Manningham Unit) awarded the VICSES Values Award.
A member of the VICSES Hastings Unit for almost a decade, almost all of which as part of the Unit Management Team or as Unit Controller, Dutchy was recognised for his commitment as a mentor for volunteers and aspiring leaders, his championing of a junior program within his unit and his advocacy and inclusion of women across the service to ensure units accurately represent the communities they serve.
Also a former Unit Controller with 18 years’ of VICSES experience behind her, Danielle was acknowledged for her tireless commitment to driving unit standards, building a strong OH&S culture to ensure members prioritise their wellbeing while leading from the front as one of VICSES’ most accomplished volunteers in the Incident Management space.
As VICSES Manningham Unit Controller, Vincent has set the example for his volunteers to follow, constantly working to create an inclusive environment within the unit and ensuring members maintain a higher-than-average level of skill and safety when responding to emergencies, championing professionalism throughout.
Finally, VICSES staff members Joshua Jacobs was awarded the VICSES Excellence in Innovation award, acknowledging his vital behind the scenes work streamlining data input for Team and Regional action plans, creating a formula now widely used statewide to support staff and managers in reporting important unit data.
The ceremony follows a busy year for local volunteers, with members in the Eastern, Southern and Bayside metropolitan areas called to almost 11,000 incidents, including more than 7,000 for storm.
To find out more about volunteering with VICSES, visit ses.vic.gov.au/join-us.
Quotes attributable to Cain Trist, VICSES Deputy Chief Officer Service Delivery (Eastern):
“Our VICSES volunteers play a vital role in keeping their communities safe 365 days a year without ever seeking recognition for their efforts.
“We’re privileged to have a cohort with such a wealth of local knowledge and experience in times of emergency and to be able to acknowledge and celebrate their achievements where we can is very special.”
