On Friday 14 February CFA acknowledged the enormous contribution of both the Sri Lankan and the Chin State communities.
CFA staff with Sri Lankan Community
Deputy Chief Officer Garry Cook and Operations Manager Stewart Kreltszheim (who was born in Sri Lanka) accepted the donations and thanked both communities for their generosity.
“It’s an honour to be able to accept these cheques today and celebrate Victoria’s diversity. Thank you to all our Victorian communities for their contributions,” Garry said.
The Sri Lankan community donated more than $15,000 to CFA after hosting a major fundraising event early in February. Sri Lankan born CFA volunteers spoke at these events about their experiences as CFA volunteers.
The Chin community has an ongoing bushfire appeal. They donated more than $60,000 last Friday, which is only the first round of donations. Chin leaders from communities and churches in Victoria were present at the handover and thanked CFA for its ongoing efforts.
Deputy Chief Officer, Garry Cook and Operations Manager, Stewart Kreltszheim with Chin Community
“Congratulations to all those involved in this amazing effort,” said Simon on behalf of the Australian Chin Community Council.
Manager Strategic Communications Sally Bodman thanked the Chin community for its enormous contribution during the bushfire crisis.
“Thank you to you and the members of the Chin communities for your ongoing support and generosity. It means so much to our firefighters to know that the community is behind them during this challenging fire season,” Sally said.
