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| Governor Penelope Wensley addresses the people of Goodna to commemorate the first anniversary of the suburb's devastating flood of 11 January 2011. |
Flood Commemoration Event at Goodna and Official Unveiling of "The Pillar of Courage"
Ceremony to commemorate the January 2011 floods and to acknowledge the spirit and resilience of the Ipswich community since January 2011
Remarks by Her Excellency Ms Penelope Wensley AC, Governor of Queensland
Alf Harris Park, Cnr Church and Queen Streets , Goodna
Wednesday 11th January, 2012
"On this third day of commemorative events in South East Queensland, marking one year since the floods that devastated so much of the State, I am especially gratified to be part of this ceremony at Goodna - and then later today, in Ipswich - and I thank Mayor Paul Pisasale and Councillor Paul Tully for inviting me to participate in and contribute to these very special - and highly significant - community events.
They are very public occasions, which will stand as part of the official history of the "Great floods of 2010-11", but they are also very intimate and personal; involving and evoking a complex set of emotions and reactions for everyone present: those who were directly affected; those who stepped up to help, to offer assistance and comfort; those who had official responsibilities - politicians, police, emergency personnel and our armed services; our churches, service and community organisations; those who reported the events; and those who have been working ever since to rebuild damaged lives, properties and businesses.
The scale of what happened in Queensland last year was - still is - hard to comprehend. I remember vividly standing here in Goodna (on 14th January) outside the Shiloh Church - hastily set up as a makeshift evacuation and emergency centre - giving an interview for French radio and then another for German Television - detailing the statistics about the size of the area under flood and threatened across the State, the numbers of homes inundated in Ipswich and describing the devastation I had just seen in Goodna, as one of the worst-hit areas. The interviewers seemed stunned - almost numbed by the thought that an area larger than France and Germany combined was affected. Just as all around me, outside and inside that church, people were stunned, bewildered, shocked by what was happening.
Every Queenslander will have their own personal set of experiences and images of the disasters that assaulted us so suddenly, so brutally and so relentlessly - that seemed to pile one on top of the other. The Premier has shared some of her recollections and impressions with us. As Queensland's Governor, during the unfolding crisis and in the months since, my husband and I have criss-crossed the State, visiting and revisiting many affected towns and communities.
We have enduring memories of countless conversations and experiences, but for me among the strongest and most abiding will be those from Goodna: stricken faces; ruined piles of furniture and personal possessions being hauled onto the streets; a thriving child-care centre reduced to a wreck - roof collapsed, wires everywhere; and a squad of air force personnel sweeping in - thundering in - to help with the clean-up; Councillor Paul Tully ("Mr Goodna" himself) crying - not for his own flooded home, but for the people of Goodna; a middle-aged woman in the Shiloh evacuation centre, with no shoes and only the clothes she had on, clearly in shock, telling me her house had been flooded, her car also, that she had nothing left, no family, no-one to turn to and no idea where to go and what to do.
Fortunately, there were people ready to help - her and others like her - in Goodna, in Ipswich and in every affected community across Queensland.
And it is that response of generosity - of compassion and humanity - that we recognise today, with the unveiling of this "pillar of courage". It is a testament to the courage and determination of many members of this Goodna community to restore it to what it was - the people who rebuilt that child-care centre, who reopened the shopping centre, cleaned up the parks and the rugby league club (still in use as a community recovery centre - for we are not ‘out of the woods' yet), but they could not do it alone - so this is not just a marker for history, and a symbol of courage and commitment, of local spirit, but of something much larger - a proud, standing-tall representation of people's readiness to help one another in times of trouble.
And that's a new and wonderfully positive image for me and for everyone associated with this special community to identify with Goodna, and that I hope will inspire the people to continue their efforts, to recommit to one another, until the job is done, until we are ‘out of the woods' so that Goodna will emerge better and stronger than before."
