Landmarks across Tamworth turned blue last night to say thank you to front line workers for their efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic.
High-profile venues and attractions like the Big Golden Guitar, the Australian Equine and Livestock Events Centre (AELEC), the Tamworth Regional Entertainment and Convention Centre (TRECC) and Tamworth Town Hall beamed blue as a mark of respect to all the workers who provided essential services to fight the coronavirus.
In the Tamworth CBD, the Tamworth Community Centre shone blue, street furniture on Fitzroy Street illuminated blue and Tamworth Regional Gallery featured a blue light sculpture.
Businesses and individuals in Tamworth and surrounding towns such as Barraba, Manilla, and Nundle were encouraged to join in by lighting shop fronts blue or digging out their blue party lights, blue Christmas lights, laser light projector or handmade blue tea light lanterns.
The initiative was the idea of Tamworth Regional Council General Manager Paul Bennett.
“I was in a meeting of council general managers across the State and we were discussing ways we could acknowledge our health care workers and emergency services,” Mr Bennett said.
“Inspired by the Light It Blue campaigns in the UK and the US which lit up landmarks in cities in those countries, I thought it was a sincere way that the Tamworth region could show its appreciation.”
On social media, people were encouraged to use the hashtag #lightitblue.
“Thank you to our nurses and doctors, ambulance personnel and fireys,” Mr Bennett said.
“Also, I’d like to give a special mention to our supermarket workers who were on the front line dealing with people frustrated by restrictions and goods shortages.
“Finally, I’d like to acknowledge the whole community for making sacrifices, including those that lost their jobs, those whose work and education was disrupted, those who did the right thing by staying at home. I’m proud of the Tamworth community for doing what we could to stop the spread the virus.
“However, the hard work isn’t over, and though we’re all starting to emerge from isolation, it’s important to maintain social distancing and abiding by restrictions to ensure we remain in this position,” he said.
The Tamworth region has had 13 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in its local government area since 21 March 2020.
