What an amazing effort by the South Gippsland Relay for Life that was held in Korumburra recently - in raising more than $67,000 for the Cancer Council. I was proud to be involved in the Relay when it was held in Wonthaggi in recent years. Bass Coast's support of the Relay has continued, with plenty of teams from the Shire taking part in this year's event. It is always an amazing display of solidarity and compassion from all involved, with the bonus of raising a lot of money to help rid the world of the terrible disease.

Headspace Wonthaggi was officially launched last Thursday. Headspace is such a valuable service for the young people in our community. It provides free confidential support services for young people aged between 12 and 25 years. At the opening, I was glad to meet Local Advisory Group members Till and Chloe, who along with other young people from Bass Coast and South Gippsland, will help ensure the voice of youth is at the core of headspace service delivery.

My weekend was spent around the water, first on Saturday with the Disabled Surfers Association Bass Coast for their second event of 2019. It was incredible to see this wonderful group in action and the smiles on all of the participants faces as they hit the surf. The volunteers involved also looked like they were having a ball! It is great to see organisations like the Disabled Surfers Association Bass Coast doing amazing things like this in our Shire.

The 34^th annual San Remo Channel Challenge was also held on Saturday, after the event was postponed in February, due to dangerous conditions. The event is run by the Woolamai Beach Surf Life Saving Club as part of the Bass Coast Series, and acts as one of the Club's major fundraisers. It is always inspiring to see the incredible effort put in by all the competitors in the swim/run event, from the juniors, all the way up to the over 50s.

On Sunday, I attended the Wonthaggi Neighbourhood Centre's Harmony Day celebrations. It's a day that is all about promoting inclusiveness, respect and a sense of belonging for everyone, which seems especially important after the recent tragedy in Christchurch. Cultural diversity is one of our greatest strengths as a nation and is what makes Australia such a great place to live. As always, the Wonthaggi Neighbourhood Centre and their volunteers did an amazing job of putting the event together.