ARARAT community members were treated to a speech from former AFL and VFL football commentator, Don Hyde at their Australia Day ceremony on Tuesday morning.
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Mr Hyde was the 2016 Australia Day ambassador for Ararat, a role that requires the individual to inspire and unite the community.
Mayor of Ararat Rural City Cr Paul Hooper, welcomed Mr Hyde and his wife, Ailsa, to Ararat.
Mr Hyde opened his speech to the crowd by praising the Ararat community for the work that its doing with transforming its health and fitness.
He outlined why he always visits the country on Australia Day, citing openness and a healthy dose of humour as factors for coming to rural areas.
“There’s no pretention or trying to impress people from the bush – good people tell it like really is.”
Mr Hyde is married to a dairy farmer’s wife from Deniliquin and he keeps saying to her: When do I qualify to be regarded as a ‘bushie’?
“’You’re still serving an apprenticeship!’ she says. ‘Just keep working on it,’” Mr Hyde told the crowd of Ailsa’s response.
Mr Hyde spoke about being a traditionalist and loving his country, particularly Australian events such as the dawn service at the Shrine of Remembrance every year, the footy grand final, the Melbourne Cup and Melbourne Show.
He re-iterated the importance of keeping the Australian history alive and reflected on Ararat’s gold history and the time of the Victorian Goldfields.
“You have the J-Ward Museum as well, with its recent rich history of being a jail and also an asylum,” Mr Hyde said to the Ararat crowd.
“The story of the miners on the Ararat Goldfields is yet another living example of the many great Australian achievements. If they were with us today, these early miners, I reckon that they would be saying right now, ‘look, it’s not where you start in life that matters, it’s where you finish that really counts.’”
“And as parents and grandparents, surely you would agree that we keep telling this to our children and keep giving them every possible support and encouragement to achieve their dreams and their ambitions.”
The former football commentator reflected on his broadcasting career and how he set to achieve his goals.
Mr Hyde entertained the crowd with a story from the book that he wrote, titled Beyond the Call – which looks at the great commentators of Australian football.
He also singled out members of the Ararat Scout Group and the young people in the audience, and gave them the same piece of advice:
“It’s not where you start in life that matters, it’s where you finish that really counts.”