2023 Australia Day Award Winners Announced Fairfield City Council

Published on January 31, 2023

Diane Gorman has been awarded the Fairfield City community’s top Australia Day honour, and was named the 2022 Fairfield City Citizen of The Year at today’s awards ceremony.

Diane provided dedicated service to the local community through her volunteering and community work for 16 years with the Bicycle Recycling Program in the Fairfield Local Government Area with the Western Sydney Cycling Network.

She volunteered for the Spring Cycle, Gear Up Girl, Amy Gillette and Parra Power, all events to raise money for breast cancer, children with a disability and the Heart Foundation.

Diane spends her time helping at the bike recycling shed to provide low cost bikes to the community, teaching kids about riding, safety and obesity prevention through school programs. She also helps people return to the workforce after head injuries through the Western Sydney Cycling Network bicycle recovery program scheme.

Fairfield City Mayor Frank Carbone presented four major awards in various categories to outstanding community members at the annual Australia Day Community Awards ceremony today at Aquatopia at Prairiewood Leisure Centre.

The winners were:

Diane Gorman – Fairfield Citizen of the Year; Neethu Siril – Young Citizen of the Year; Khanh Van Mach – Volunteer of the Year; and Luka Knezevic – Sports Performer of the Year

Medallion and certificate recipients were also recognized in honor of their contribution to the community.

Medallion recipients were:

Citizen of the Year: Joline George Volunteer of the Year: Geoff Davis Sports Performer of the Year Medallion recipients: Ellen Ryan and Lukas Strbac.

Certificate recipients were:

Citizen of the Year: Linda Ngoc Dao and Rod Galic. Young Citizen of the Year: Kalvin Lucas Biag, Sabrina Bizhn, Sogatta Lazar, Natalie Mak and Tina Tran. Sports Performer of the Year certificate recipients: Matthias Alai, Lucas Fordham, Jordan Miller and Christina Saha.

Fairfield City Mayor Frank Carbone said the Australia Day Community Awards are held each year to recognize and pay tribute to all those who dedicate their time and effort to making Fairfield City a better community for all.

“Their dedication and commitment is an example to all of us,” said Mayor Carbone.

“Our winners often go about their business quietly, but I would like to publicly thank all these community achievers and recognize their tireless efforts on our special national day.

“I congratulate Diane Gorman, Neethu Siril, Khanh Van Mach and Luka Knezevic on their wonderful achievements.”

2023 Citizen of the Year: Diane Gorman

Diane provided dedicated service to the local community through her volunteering and community work for 16 years with the Bicycle Recycling Program in the Fairfield Local Government Area with the Western Sydney Cycling Network. She volunteered for the Spring Cycle, Gear Up Girl, Amy Gillette and Parra Power, all events to raise money for breast cancer, children with a disability and the heart foundation.

Diane spends her time helping at the bike recycling shed providing low cost bikes to the community, teaching kids about riding, safety and obesity prevention through school programs and helping people get back into the workforce after head injuries through the Western Sydney Cycling Network bicycle recovery program scheme.

2023 Young Citizen of the Year: Neethu Siril

Neethu is part of her school’s Student Representative Committee and has volunteered her time generously, through her volunteer work with the Youth Group, the Red Shield Appeal, the St Vincent De Paul Center at Mount Pritchard and as a Catechist teacher. She was the 2022 Congregation Leader for her school. She also volunteered her time to a reading program as a tutor for neighboring primary students to develop their literacy and reading skills.

Neethu was awarded the Order of Australia and Youth Community Service Award in 2022 in recognition of her service to the community.

2023 Volunteer of the Year: Khanh Van Mach

Khanh makes a significant contribution to helping disadvantaged groups, especially children with a disability. Since 2008, he has volunteered as one of the chartered members for Special Children’s Services Center and has worked as a volunteer in the Fairfield area for 10 years. He settled in the Fairfield area in 1980 as a Vietnamese refugee and was in contact with many Vietnamese families with special needs children living in Fairfield City.

In 2012, he began offering special needs training classes to help numerous residents and continues to hold these two-hour sessions every two weeks. He educates new members about the importance of supporting children with a disability at an early stage. He gives people hope and encouragement during activity classes, on field trips and through an educational program.

2023 Sports Performer of the Year: Luka Knezevic

Luka is an exceptional young athlete and student who attends Bossley Park High School and is part of the school’s highly regarded talented football program. He was recently signed for the Marconi Stallions First Grade team for the 2022/2023 season at the age of 16. Luka recently returned from the Australia Joeys (U.17) camp held in Melbourne to prepare for the AFC U.17 Asian Cup qualifiers.

2022 was a successful year for Luka who was selected in the Australian Schoolboys Team, NSW All Schools and Sydney South West Teams.

The award ceremony was assisted by the Australian Government through the National Australia Day Council.