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I am honoured to have received in a special ceremony this morning, the ‘Australia Day 2021 Citizen of the Year’ Medal. I am very proud to be recognized on this wonderful and important day in the history of this nation of Australia.

Our commitment to the golden soil of this land motivated us to work voluntarily to serve our community. We love Australia, the most peaceful country in the world that provided its citizens with  sense of fair go, lifestyle, democracy, the freedoms and equality that every community enjoys without any racial or religious discrimination, particularly our Assyrian  people who have suffered for centuries under different rulers in the Middle East. Australia for us is our second homeland, the Land of prosperity and opportunities. On this day we also pay our respect to the indigenous people of Australia, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who have been here for more than 65,000 years, to those who have lived here for generations, and to those who have come from all corners of the globe to call our country home.

I also would like to congratulate Mr David David for receiving the Australia Day 2021 ‘Volunteer of the Year’ Medal.

I would like to thank the organisers of this wonderful event, Fairfield City Council,  under the leadership of Mayor Frank Carbone and Deputy Mayor Paul Azzo> Also my special thanks to Mrs Carmen Lazar and all those who nominated both of us for this award. Finally, I would like to thank my family for their support for the past 40 years to our commitment to the Assyrian community and nation.