Liverpool’s finest honoured for community work
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Two of Liverpool’s unsung local heroes were honoured for their community work at the ZEST Awards at Sydney Olympic Stadium on Friday, 15 January.
Liverpool Neighbourhood Connections CEO Patricia Hall was admitted to the ZEST Hall of Fame, while refugee advocate Aya Mustafa won the Outstanding Youth Leader award.
“The ZEST Awards have recognised two great local champions who symbolise everything great about Liverpool - a city with a heart,” Liverpool Mayor Wendy Waller said.
Organised by the Western Sydney Community Forum, the ZEST Awards are the premier event for the community sector in Greater Western Sydney.
Ms Hall has spent 29 years working in the community sector and says she was initially inspired by women who supported her during difficult moments in her life.
“I want to help other women like I’ve been helped,” she said. “I love what I do.”
Liverpool Neighbourhood Connections has provided more than 5500 hours of work for disadvantaged women, mainly through scholarships.
Ms Hall says she is “really humbled” by being singled out for such an auspicious award.
“I believe all community workers should be in the Hall of Fame,” she said.
Aya Mustafa arrived in Australia in 2008 aged 12 as a refugee from Iraq. She has since used her experience to help those who followed her, playing a key role in the Community Migrant Resource Centre’s Mentoring Accelerator Program.
As a research student, she has both studied and helped Iraqi and Syrian refugees with employment and education opportunities.
“It’s all about give and take,” Ms Mustafa said. “I really enjoy the pleasure and appreciation you get when you help the community.”
NSW Premier and ZEST Patron Gladys Berejiklian congratulated all the nominees and winners.
“Since 2011 the ZEST Awards have celebrated the achievements of Western Sydney’s diverse and dynamic community,” Ms Berejiklian said.
“It is extremely important to recognise the hard work, innovations and talent of local people who inspire and remind us that we can all play a part in our region’s success.”