CONSTITUENCY STATEMENTS

Mr WALLACE (Fisher) (10:22): Roy and Nola Thompson were two of the greatest philanthropists the Sunshine Coast has ever known, and I feel enormously privileged to have known them both and to have worked alongside them for a number of years. Their contribution to our community is almost impossible to quantify. Publicly reported gifts and commitments alone run well beyond $30 million.

But the true measure of Roy and Nola's generosity was never simply the amount of money they gave; it was what that generosity made possible. They helped establish and grow the Thompson Institute, supporting groundbreaking work in mental health suicide prevention, neuroscience and PTSD. They helped make Australia's first residential eating disorder facility, Wandi Nerida, a reality.

They gave $2 million towards the Wishlist Centre, which supports patients and families receiving treatment at the Sunshine Coast University Hospital. They backed scholarships and students at UniSC and supported foundations, men's sheds, local sporting organisations, churches and countless people experiencing hardship. Roy was also there at the beginning of the Sunshine Coast Rescue Helicopter Service, helping establish that service that has gone on to save countless lives.

I had the privilege of working with Roy and Nola on a number of these projects. When they backed the Thompson Institute, I fought to bring Commonwealth funding to the table. When they provided the land that helped make Wandi Nerida possible, I worked to secure $6 million from the federal government to get the building out of the ground.

When they contributed $2 million towards the Wishlist Centre, I was incredibly proud to secure $12 million in Commonwealth funding towards that project. But there's a very big difference between what I was able to do and what they were able to do. They used their money.

I just got money from the Commonwealth, which is Australian taxpayers' money, but it was money that they donated out of their pockets. Their partnership as a couple says so much about who Roy and Nola were. They saw a need, they backed people with vision and they were prepared to put their own money behind causes they believed would make our community stronger.

They never did it for recognition, not once. They did it because they loved the Sunshine Coast. They deeply believed in giving back to the community that gave them so much.

Their names may be on buildings, institutes and facilities across our nation, but their real legacy is in the people whose lives have been changed because of their generosity. The Sunshine Coast is better off for them. Vale, Roy and Nola Thompson.