General News
25 January, 2026
Shire announces ward citizens of the year
Community heroes wlll be honour at Australia Day ceremonies across Loddon tomorrow with ward citizen of the year awards
Boort Ward Citizen of the Year – Sherryn O’Flaherty
A COMMITMENT to Boort’s young people has seen Sherryn O’Flaherty named Loddon Shire’s
Boort Ward Citizen of the Year.
Sherryn has been involved with the Boort Debutante Ball over the past five years as an organiser and trainer, volunteering her time to ensure a continued opportunity for the young people of Boort and district to be involved in this long-standing tradition.
Sherryn’s commitment to training debutantes and their partners involves two sessions per week over a 10-12 week period in the lead up to the big night as well as catch up sessions as needed.
But Sherryn’s commitment to her community doesn’t end with the Deb Ball.
At the Boort Hockey Club she is always the first one to put her hand up to help do a roster shift, cook a meal or simply help with the Minkey (mini hockey) kids.
Sherryn is also a volunteer at Boort Parkrun and vice-president of Boort District School Parent’s Club.
Inglewood Ward Citizen of the Year – Deborah Abbott
“DEB is entirely selfless. She is one of those amazing people who sees a need and just does it without being asked or expected.”
That commitment has seen the Bridgewater resident named the Inglewood Ward Citizen of the Year.
A volunteer with the Bridgewater Fire Brigade, Deb commits to keeping the Bridgewater Fire Station looking neat and tidy. She also voluntarily helps maintain the local primary school, even though she has no family or personal connection with the school, and keeps her eye on some elderly residents, often seen putting out or bringing in their bins.
Similarly to her efforts at the fire station, Deb just gets in and does what needs to be done.
Terrick Ward Citizen of the Year – Helen Stevens
A LIFETIME of volunteering has been recognised with the naming of Helen Stevens as the Terrick Ward Citizen of the Year.
Helen’s love for history has seen her dedicate the most part of the last 40 years to the Pyramid Hill and District Historical Society, with most of that time as secretary or archivist or both.
As well as her roles in administration, she has assisted in hosting tours of the museum, educational visits for local students, researching family histories and writing many publications on different aspects of the local district.
Helen has volunteered in the Pyramid Hill community for most of her adult life and has taken on a variety of committee positions.
She has been an active member of St Thomas’ Anglican Church Mothers Union, taught Sunday School, and was organist for the Sunday services, as well as Ecumenical gatherings.
In her youth, Helen trained as a nurse and worked at the old Pyramid Hill hospital in the 1950s before marrying local farmer Graeme. She returned to nursing in the “new” hospital in the 70s, while raising her family.
Later, Helen was a regular visitor at the Bush Nursing Hospital and Aged Care Hostel for many years, playing music for singalongs or just having a cuppa and a chat with residents.
She made up special song books for the Hostel residents with all their old favourite sing-a-long titles.
Helen also played the piano or the organ for the annual Anzac services for many years, as well as at many other local events.
She has always loved supporting and encouraging young people and served for several years as a Cub leader.
Tarnagulla Ward Citizen of the Year – Brian Baker
WHEN Brian Baker’s parents encouraged him as a youngster to put back into the Laanecoorie community, he certainly took up the challenge.
That commitment has seen him named Loddon Shire’s Tarnagulla Ward Citizen of the Year.
Brian is a great advocate for local issues, often meeting with politicians and company representatives to discuss important matters. He is a wealth of local knowledge. Brian is also closely involved with the Laanecoorie Hall, being elected to the Hall committee in 2011.
In later years when community events were organised to encourage get togethers, Brian worked quietly behind the scenes, never one to seek attention, rallying business support to keep costs down.
This helped to raise some vital funds for the hall and the fire brigade, while encouraging community members to come together to socialise and get to know each other better at events that were low cost.
Brian has been a member of the Woodstock West Fire Brigade and an active serving fire fighter for 56 years. He also served for a time as secretary and 4th Lieutenant.
Brian was a member of the Victorian Young Farmers Club of Laanecoorie and also served a term as president. He also helped organise and run the Annual Laanecoorie Young Farmers Ball, held at the Laanecoorie Hall.
Brian went on to become a Young Farmer Advisor after his days of being a member were over.
The Laanecoorie branch of the Victorian Farmers Federation has also been an organisation Brian has been involved in for many years, with his branch office bearer roles including president.
Wedderburn Ward Citizen of the Year – Bruce Hargreaves
BRUCE Hargreaves has demonstrated exceptional dedication to community service through his involvement in numerous Wedderburn organisations over several decades – now that has been recognised by him being named Loddon Shire’s Wedderburn Ward Citizen of the Year.
His volunteer journey began in his teenage years with the Wedderburn Harness Racing Club, where he started as a track attendant and steadily rose to become President – a role he has held for the past 10 years.
In recognition of his outstanding service, Bruce was honoured as a life member at the 2025 Wedderburn Harness Racing Cup.
His leadership extended to the Donaldson Park complex, where
Bruce played a pivotal role in its development. Drawing on his building expertise and deep understanding of community needs, he served on the planning committee for seven years, helping bring the project to completion in 2024.
He now serves as chair of the Donaldson Park Complex Community Asset Committee, continuing the legacy of long-standing community leadership.
Bruce chairs the Wedderburn Engine Park and Market Square Community Asset Committee, where he has served as a community representative for the past 11 years.
His earlier contributions include active involvement in the now-disbanded Wedderburn Young Farmers and Wedderburn Apex, where he held committee roles and earned life membership for his service.