JUNE 16, 2020 \ STARWEEKLY.COM.AU
War medals returned A collection of stolen World War II medals have been returned to their rightful owners with a bit of help from the Caroline Springs RSL. The service medals for Harold Hawking were found discarded beside a bin in Windsor after being stolen from a storage cage in Albert Park belonging to Mr Hawking’s son, Paul. With a friend of the man who found the medals sharing a connection to the Caroline Springs RSL, president Andrew Marshall set about returning them. “We ended up with them and I worked with the vice president at the Melton branch to check up on them and eventually found their owner,” Mr Marshall said. “To some people these medals mean a hell of a lot, so to get them back to the family is really special.” The medals, complete with service records from Hawking Senior’s time in Syria and New Guinea, were returned to Paul Hawking on June 5, who was happy to have the special mementos back. “I’m not sure when they were taken, I just went to ind them in my storage cage one day and they were gone,” he said. “It’s good to have them back in the family, and we’ve got a bit of a story to go with it now, as well as the historical signiicance.” Ewen McRae
Paul Hawking and Andrew Marshall at the handover of the stolen medals. (Pictures: Supplied)
Hospital ‘in your hands’ By Ewen McRae Planning for the future Melton Hospital is well underway and residents are being encouraged to have their say. he state government recently released a survey for residents and community members to give input on what type of health care they would like to see and which services they think need to be improved. he survey is part of a $2.4 million project
to plan the range of services that would be delivered by a new hospital and how they’ll link with other regional healthcare facilities. he process, including community feedback, will help form a business case that will outline the issues, solutions, timeframes and costings for a new hospital. Melton mayor Lara Carli said it was important for residents to make their voices heard to ensure the hospital best met the needs of the region.
“his is a really important part of the planning process where you have the opportunity to help shape a future Melton Hospital around the healthcare priorities of you and your family,” Cr Carli said. “More than 21,000 people in the Melton community supported council’s campaign to build a Melton Hospital – an incredible and unprecedented joining of forces which helped champion the need for the Victorian government to undertake a business case.
“Now, residents have the chance to help ensure a future facility delivers the best possible care and services for our community. “It’s really exciting to see that planning for this critically-needed hospital is progressing.” he government plans to have the business case for the hospital complete by the end of the year, with council hoping for construction to begin in 2022, ahead of a 2026 opening. he survey will be open until August 3 at engage.vic.gov.au/future-health-care-melton
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