Selfless contributions lauded

Maurice Fong was announced Senior Citizen of the Year recognising his time and effort helping the community.

The winners of the 2017 Australia Day WA Citizen of the Year Awards for Albany were announced by the City of Albany last month.

With 23 finalists in this year’s awards, Mayor Dennis Wellington said it was one of the highest achieving fields of nominations ever received and he applauded the contributions they had all made to the community.

“There are many individuals and organisations that provide outstanding contributions to our community and these awards recognise their hard work,” he said.

“The winners stood out from a very strong field for their contribution to the community and leadership and I congratulate them on their achievements.”

Mr Fong moved to Albany after arriving in Australia in 1968 with his wife and said he fell in love with the Great Southern and has been here ever since.

The 78-year-old has been a well-known figure in Albany since arriving and was selected for his continuous selfless contributions, often behind the scenes, cooking meals for those in need and donating the proceeds from his paintings to charities.

Mr Fong said he loves cooking meals for the elderly and those living alone.

“I just like the look on their face when I give them these meals; watching their face light up reminds me why I do it,” he said.

“I love helping out whenever I can; it’s better than watching the square box all day.”

Mr Fong said since he has been in Albany the community has always been welcoming and very good to him and his wife.

“The community here have been so wonderful and looked after us all these years so now it’s my turn to give back to them,” he said. “I think that should be the way it is, I love engaging and talking to people and I think doing something for your community is better than doing nothing at all.”

Mr Fong said he was surprised and honoured to be awarded the title of Senior Citizen of the Year.