Good morning.
I want to begin by acknowledging the traditional custodians of the land on which we meet today, the Gubbi Gubbi and pay my respects to their elders past and present.
I would like to extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who join us today.
I acknowledge the current and ex-serving members of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) who are here with us and thank you for your service.
And, I also acknowledge the families of our ADF personnel and veterans. Thank you for your sacrifices.
It’s wonderful to be back in Queensland to see the Lives Lived Well Veterans’ and Families’ Hub up and running.
In Caboolture alone we know for every 25 residents, one is either a current or former serving member of Australia’s Defence Force.
Add in family members and you can appreciate how significant the veteran community in Caboolture is and the importance of this Hub.
Lives Lived Well have worked quickly to stand up this Hub, it’s great to see the doors open to the community less than 10 months after I announced the $5 million grant to get this up and running.
I am really pleased to see the partnership between Lives Lived Well and the Vietnam Veterans Association of Australia (Queensland Branch) in establishing this Hub.
Between Lives Lived Well’s decades of experience in providing health and wellbeing support, and the Vietnam Veterans Association’s experience at the coal face, I look forward to seeing how your organisations, both leaders in your respective fields, work together to connect with, and support veterans here in Caboolture.
With 40 years of experience in providing mental health and wellbeing support, Lives Lived Well will bring an expert perspective to supporting the wellbeing of the Australian veteran community, which will be hugely beneficial in providing best practice advice for the whole Hub network.
The Hub will be a one stop shop for veterans and families here in Caboolture, connecting them to support for employment, housing, transition, advocacy, mental health, wellbeing and counselling services.
A key focus will be on assisting recently transitioned Defence personnel and their families to adjust to civilian life and become part of the community here.
That transition is something that we know can be challenging not only for veterans but also for their families – and we also know that an awful lot of veterans choose Southeast Queensland as their retirement location of choice, with more people transitioning to civilian life here, over anywhere else.
As a Western Australian who can’t cope with humidity, I’ve got no idea why… but hey, we know our current and former serving personnel love it here.
At last year’s election, the Albanese Labor Government committed to expanding the network of Veterans’ and Families’ Hubs across the nation and we delivered with funding in last year’s Budget.
We’re establishing Hubs in regions with significant veteran communities and that means right here, in Southeast Queensland.
Now it’s up to you to build those community connections, make sure local veterans know of the awesome potential of this site but more importantly that they know of, and can access the services available here and through here.
I know you’re hosting a family day in November, that’ll be an excellent opportunity to not only encourage local veterans to connect to the services on offer here – but also just get to know one another.
Our Veterans’ and Families’ Hubs network is about co-ordinated supports in a welcoming environment, ranging from clinical through to networking and group supports.
They’re about delivering a better future for veterans and families.
So without any further ado, it is my pleasure to declare the Caboolture Veterans’ and Families’ Hub officially open for business.
Thank you.
