This citation was read on the occasion of Ian Harris's induction into the City of Cessnock Hall of Fame on 25 November 2009.
Ian Harris was born in Kurri Kurri in 1945. He was educated at Kurri Kurri High School before graduating from the University of Newcastle in 1969.
Ian’s early career involved periods as a university tutor and schoolteacher before he joined the Federal parliamentary staff in 1972.
He was later appointmented as Deputy Clerk (in 1991), prior to his current role of Clerk of the House of Representatives in 1997. He oversees 250 staff providing administrative and security support to the House of Representatives, its committees and its international and domestic liaison services.
There are many achievements throughout Ian’s career including:-
Ian’s initiative has led him to work on parliamentary development projects and training in many countries such as Kenya, East Timor, China, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Tonga, Vanuatu and Samoa.
Ian’s accolades include the University of Newcastle Convocation Medal for professional excellence (2000), the Australian Centenary Medal (2001) and Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) in 2007 for service to the Parliament of Australia.
He is the author of various articles in legal, historical and parliamentary journals, and he has been editor of the 4th, 5th and forthcoming 6th editions of House of Representatives Practice (Australia).
Away from work, Ian has served as President of the ACT Public Service Rugby League, Secretary of the Tuggeranong Rugby Club and as Chair of Queanbeyan SkillShare, in the town he now calls home.
This citation was read on the occasion of Trevor King's induction into the City of Cessnock Hall of Fame on 25 November 2009.
Trevor King was born in Cessnock in 1930, the youngest child of a large family. He attended local primary schools until the age of 11, when he contracted polio and rheumatic fever, which led to several months being spent in Newcastle Hospital.
Whilst still young, Trevor started to box, which helped him to strengthen his body following the polio. He learned boxing at Taff Thomas’ boxing gym alongside Tinkler’s Hotel. In 1947, Trevor left home and went to live in Sydney to further his boxing career, becoming a professional boxer. During his career, he won 60 out of 61 bouts in contests across Australia, and became Australian Featherweight Boxing Champion. In 2006, in recognition of his achievements in boxing, he was inducted into the Australian National Boxing Hall of Fame.
His boxing career in itself would warrant induction into the Hall of Fame, but it is for his other achievements in public service later in life that Trevor was nominated.
In the 1950s, Trevor’s life after boxing took a different path, as he focused in providing assistance to those individuals who lives were affected by drug or alcohol addiction. As well as becoming a Salvation Army minister, he also went on to study drug and alcohol rehabilitation in Europe, the UK and at the Betty Ford Clinic in the USA.
In the early 1970s, Trevor established the Westside Mission at Ebenezer, in the Hawkesbury district. Westside is a live-in rehabilitation centre which offers a 12 month program for those with drug and alcohol dependency, with a very high success rate for those who complete the program. Trevor was awarded an OAM in 2004 for his endeavours at Westside, a not-for-profit charity staffed by volunteers, and now one of the most successful operations of its type in Australia.
Throughout his life Trevor has demonstrated enormous tenacity, and endured considerable ill health. In spite of this he has shown great commitment to others, and consequently received many accolades, including being the subject of This is Your Life, and frequent references to his good work and accomplishments in parliament.
This citation was read on the occasion of Frank Lovett's induction into the City of Cessnock Hall of Fame on 26 November 2008.
Although Frank Lovett was born in Islington, Newcastle in 1889, he spent his adult life in Cessnock from 1908, until he died in 1973. For most of his working life he was Chief Colliery Clerk of Caledonian Collieries.
Frank’s life of public service to the communities of Cessnock represents a lifetime of commitment to and involvement with those communities in a way which few could emulate. His civic life made him a household name in the area during his years of service.
Frank served Cessnock wearing many hats, including but not limited to –
He was also instrumental in securing the former Abernethy Hotel as a future home for elderly men, many of whom were his former colleagues from the Aberdare South Colliery.
In recognition of his community leadership, Frank received many honours. Highest amongst them were the Ambulance Star Medal (1957) by the NSW Ambulance Board and the Queen’s Coronation Medal (1958).
This citation was read on the occasion of Bill Stephenson's induction into the City of Cessnock Hall of Fame on 26 November 2008.
Joseph William Charlton Stephenson was born in Northumberland in England in 1908, but during his adult life in Cessnock, where he settled in 1926, he was known to most people as “Bill”.
Bill’s working life was spent in the Cessnock area, almost entirely in local government.
Bill advanced from wages clerk with Kearsley Shire Council, through to Shire Clerk in 1953 and then Town Clerk from 1957 - 1973, as the Cessnock municipality grew and evolved through many amalgamations, name and boundary changes.
During Bill’s period of leadership the community experienced both good and bad times, but by the time he retired, Bill had seen the building of Cessnock Airport, the Alcan Factory at Kurri Kurri and the clothing factory at Weston, improvements to roads, and the growth and development of the wine industry as a new player in the tourist industry. His leadership played a key part in these developments. He was also instrumental in the establishment of the Cessnock City Library Bookmobile service.
Away from local government, Bill was an active member of his community, involved with the Defence Corps, Cessnock’s Rifle, Bowling and Lions Clubs, Cessnock High School P & C and the Mineworkers’ Credit Union.
Bill was awarded the British Empire Medal in 1975 for his 46 years’ service to local government.
Bill Stephenson died in 1984.
This citation was read on the occasion of Griffith Duncan's induction into the City of Cessnock Hall of Fame on 28 November 2007.
Griffith Hammond Duncan was born in Kurri Kurri in 1914 of Welsh and Scottish parentage. His early education was at Kurri Kurri, followed by Maitland Boys’ High School.
Having studied at the University of Sydney, Griffith completed his teacher training at SydneyTeachers’ College before starting his teaching career at Newcastle Junior High School.
In 1940 he gained his Master of Arts degree in Mathematics with First Class Honours, and was awarded the University Medal.
In the same year, he began over five years’ service with the RAAF.
After the war, he taught mathematics in a number of locations before going to Wagga Wagga Teachers’ College as Vice-Principal for two years.
In 1949, Griffith, as Founding Principal, opened the new Newcastle Teachers’ College in a building that was later to become part of Newcastle Technical High School.
He served in this capacity until his retirement in 1975, having seen the Teachers’ College evolve into Newcastle College of Advanced Education on a new campus and then the Hunter Institute of Higher Education.
He was awarded an OBE in 1968.
The Griffith Duncan Theatre at the University of Newcastle was named in Griffith’s honour in 1975.
Griffith died in 1988.
http://www.newcastle.edu.au/service/archives/placenames/duncan.html
http://www.newcastle.edu.au/service/archives/digitalscriptorium/pdf/unionstreet.pdf
http://www.newcastle.edu.au/service/archives/digitalscriptorium/50th/50hihe.html
http://www.newcastle.edu.au/service/archives/CAE/caeflame2.html
This citation was read on the occasion of Clarence Jeffries's induction into the City of Cessnock Hall of Fame on 28 November 2007.
Clarence Smith Jeffries was born in Wallsend, NSW in 1894.
His father, Joshua Jeffries, worked in the mining industry, and during World War I was living at Abermain.
It was at Abermain, in 1916, that Clarence enlisted in the 9th Infantry Brigade, 34th Infantry Battalion, C Company to serve in World War I.
During an advance at Passchendaele on 12 October 1917, Captain Clarence Jeffries was killed, aged 23 years.
He is buried at Tyne Cot Cemetery in Belgium.
An extract from The London Gazette dated 18 December 1917 records the following citation for his award of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for acts of bravery in wartime:-
For most conspicuous bravery in attack, when his company was held up by enemy machine-gun fire from concrete emplacements. Organising a party, he rushed one emplacement, capturing four machine guns and thirty-five prisoners. He then led his company forward under extremely heavy enemy artillery barrage and enfilade machine-gun fire to the objective.Later, he again organised a successful attack on a machine-gun emplacement, capturing two machine guns and thirty more prisoners. This gallant officer was killed during the attack, but it was entirely due to his bravery and initiative that the centre of the attack was not held up for a lengthy period. His example had a most inspiring influence.
Captain Jeffries’ Victoria Cross is presently located at Christ Church Cathedral, Newcastle, NSW.
http://www.awm.gov.au/roh/person.asp?p=145-28015
http://www.awm.gov.au/nominalrolls/ww1/embarkation/person.asp?p=290985
http://www.awm.gov.au/honours/honours/person.asp?p=JE9242
http://www.awm.gov.au/honours/awm28/person.asp?p=6616
http://www.cwgc.org/search/cemetery_details.aspx?cemetery=53300&mode=1
http://www.cwgc.org/search/casualty_details.aspx?casualty=463369
http://www.cwgc.org/search/certificate.aspx?casualty=463369
This citation was read on the occasion of Harry Cockerill's induction into the City of Cessnock Hall of Fame on 6th December 2006.
Francis Henry “Harry” Cockerill was born in Greta in 1899, and was educated at Kurri Kurri public school. He spent most of his early life Greta, and then Kurri Kurri.
Harry’s working life began in the coal mines at Rothbury and Richmond Main collieries, where is soon became involved in union activities. He was the Secretary at Rothbury, and was a member of the strike committee during the 1929/30 strike.
He was also present at the Rothbury Riot on 16th December 1929.
During the 1930s, he became the Organiser for the Combined Mining Union Council for Rothbury and Burragorang and a member of the Northern District Board of Management. He served as Vice President of that Board during the 1950s. In addition, Harry was a Councillor on Kearsley Shire Council.
He subsequently moved to Cardiff , where he was elected Australian Labour Party President for Hunter Federal Electorate Council, and he was a member of the Central Executive.
From 1959 – 1973, Harry was a member NSW Legislative Council.
Following his retirement, Harry lived in Cardiff , where he died in 1987 aged 88.
This citation was read on the occasion of Philip Wilson's induction into the City of Cessnock Hall of Fame on 6th December 2006.
Philip Wilson was born in Cessnock in 1950. He was educated at St. Patrick's Primary School followed by St Joseph 's College, Hunters Hill.
He attended St Columba's Seminary, in Springwood followed and St Patrick's Seminary at Manly. He was ordained into the priesthood for the Maitland Diocese in 1975, and served at East Maitland.
Philip’s held a number of key positions in the Maitland Diocese including Maitland parish priest, Director of Religious Education, Bishop's Secretary and Master of Ceremonies, Vicar General and Director of the Tribunal. During this period, he also studied in the US for his doctorate in Canon Law.
In 1995, Philip was appointed Prelate of Honour by Pope John Paul II, and a year later was appointed Bishop of Wollongong.
In 2001, Philip was installed as the 8th Archbishop of Adelaide. He is currently President of the Australian Catholic Bishops.
http://www.adelaide.catholic.org.au/sites/Archbishop/biography
