citizens abound at burrinja

I had the great pleasure of being part of the official proceedings at one of the Shire’s Citizenship Ceremonies held today, this time, at Burrinja in Upwey. Citizenship Ceremonies are a great occasion where there is a real sense of joy and celebration.

It was nice to hold a citizenship ceremony locally, in the past the ceremonies have been in Lilydale. The Burrinja gallery was a very fitting location with participants surrounded by aboriginal art as they took their oath.

Just under 40 residents from across the Shire of Yarra Ranges were joined by family and friends to share the occasion which was marked by a terrific performance by the Upwey South Primary School Choir.

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Frances from Upwey South Primary School lead the choir and was joined by students; Saranne, Simone, Ruby, Amelia, Shannan, Maddison, Ivy, Laura, Sarah, Aimee, Gemma, Ellie, Brittany, Charlotte, Tiarn and Jake.

It was my task to call out the names of people to come forward and undertake their oath and although sometimes challenging, it makes me realise what a culturally diverse and rich society we are and I have no doubt we are the better for it.