Merredin SES honour past Local Coordinator
In recent times Merredin SES has gone through an upgrade with the building of a new shed and now with new plans being developed for further upgrades. These new extensions help support the very important Emergency Service offered to the community. Recently the unit held an open day for the community to come and see the Unit’s Headquarters and meet the team.
On the day past and present members reminisced and looked back at the history of the unit and how it used to be housed in an old fuel deport located at the eastern end of Barrack St near the roundabout in Mary St. at that time it was governed by WA State Emergency Service (WASES) (Now the Department of Fire & Emergency Services DFES). Local Coordinator then was Mario Discenza.
Unlike now days funding to manage the SES was mainly via Fundraising and a very small honorarium from Local Government and lots of local support. One element that hasn’t change since then is the dedication of the volunteer members.
It was with the enthusiasm and dedication of Mr Discenza that the unit survived and grew, and acquired new headquarters, where it remains today and still continues to grow. Mr Discenza had offered years of dedicated volunteer service and with the transition into Fire and Emergency Services (FESA) his efforts seemed to have gone unnoticed.
Mr Discenza accepted an invite to attend Merredin SES open day and shared a story or two over a BBQ, with current members of how Merredin SES came to be. Current members had all agreed that if it hadn’t been for Mr Discenza’s courage the unit wouldn’t be where it is today and as such honoured him with a belated but well deserved Certificate of Excellence. Present for the presentation was DFES District Officer, Natural Hazards Mr. Matthew Reimer, who presented Mr Discenza with the award.
