Hall has it all

At first light each Anzac Day up to 1000 residents rise from their beds and march by lantern-light through the streets of Kooweerup to the cenotaph for the annual Dawn Service.
Although the town’s war heroes were already commemorated on various honour boards, residents felt the need for a central focal point and so set about raising funds and building the cenotaph outside the town’s community centre in 2005.
Local volunteers and members of the RSL toiled for many months constructing the amphitheatre and the concrete base that the cenotaph rests on. The town’s warmth and hospitality ensured that the apprentice stonemasons from Holmesglen TAFE who worked on the project never went hungry, with morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea provided by an army of volunteers.
This is authentic regional Australia at its best. Across Australia, it is the local RSL, the CFA, the school council, Rotary and traders groups that form the backbone of this nation.
Human Rights Commissioner Gillian Trigg’s unfortunate use of the word “shabby” in conjunction with Kooweerup and the town’s community centre says more about her than it does about the town.
And it belies the truth: Kooweerup’s modern, airy community centre is at the heart of a thriving community. There is nothing “shabby” about it.
Ms Trigg has every right to make a foolish comment, but I vigorously defend the right of the town to fight back and call it for what it is: elitist and more than a little pompous.
I am very glad to hear that Ms Trigg has now backed away from her comments and apologised to local residents.
I invite Ms Trigg to visit Kooweerup in the very near future to meet local residents and members of the Kooweerup Township Committee, the RSL and the CFA.
I would be delighted to personally escort her around the town. She will see first-hand what a thriving regional community looks like.
Greg Hunt,
Flinders MP.