Citizen of the Year - Nominees

Jean Jones is a nominee to who lives and breathes all things Tarwin Lower. She has a deep fondness and appreciation for her home town and the people in it, and as a result Jean takes enormous pride in the presentation and safety of Tarwin Lower. She is an active member of the Tarwin Action Group and proud volunteer who dedicates much of her time to her local community. 

Jean is always busy on her feet keeping Tarwin beautiful. She started with the Tarwin fishing platforms, obtaining the keys to the bins from the relevant authority to empty the rubbish. These bins often contained hooks, fishing lines and lures, which Jean stopped from overfilling into the Tarwin River.  

If walking from platform to platform with just a bucket and bag was not enough, Jean also organised a massive cleanup along the riverbank. Afterwards, she lobbied Council to collect all the green waste that had been removed from the bank. 

Jean then rallied volunteers to help clean up Fisher Reserve. They cleaned out the undergrowth and overgrowth, then planned a garden planting event, where she successfully secure support from  Council to provide plants for the garden. 

She then committed her time to ensuring proper care was taken to clean and upgrade the cenotaph. Resulting in lavender being planted and the cenotaph looking bright and welcoming for ANZAC and Remembrance Day. 

Her commitment to the beautification of Tarwin Lower is incredible. Jean has been instrumental in organising planter boxes to go out the front of the local shops. On a dry day you can find Jean watering the colourful flowers and plants, adding to the overall vibracy of Tarwin Lower. She also successfully acquired grant funding to get festive decorations for the local storefronts, getting the town into the the holiday spirit. 

No task is too difficult for Jean. Her constant efforts in keeping Tarwin Lower fresh, clean and tidy, are greatly admired by her community. When she asks for help, no one can say no, nor would they want to because she inspires everyone to believe they can make a difference to their little town on the south coast of Gippsland. She is the positive force in Tarwin Lower that often inspires others to give back into their community.