Wednesday, 30 August 2023

Tony King

Bridget VALLENCE (Evelyn) (09:44): I wish to congratulate and pay tribute to Tony King, who was awarded life membership of the Victorian Country Fire Authority at the recent Mooroolbark fire brigade annual dinner – a tremendous achievement. Anthony King is an exceptional person. A volunteer firefighter for 39 years, Tony served with distinction as captain of the Mooroolbark fire brigade for 18 years, held many other brigade roles prior to this, is also a life member of Mooroolbark fire brigade and was deputy group officer of the Melba group.

Being a leader in the fire services requires courage, compassion and dedication, qualities that Tony King has consistently demonstrated as CFA captain, prioritising the safety and wellbeing of his brigade members first. Tony King’s contributions are countless and include fighting in the 2009 Black Saturday bushfires, for which Tony received the National Emergency Medal, and more recently the utterly tragic Maralee Drive, Mooroolbark, house fire, in which the brigade bravely saved the lives of two children. None of this would have been possible without the support of Tony’s family, especially his wife Di. Thank you. Our community owes a great debt of gratitude to Tony King for his dedication and leadership and for especially fostering the next generation of volunteer firefighters to protect Mooroolbark and the outer east. Thank you, Tony King, for your service to Mooroolbark and to the CFA. Life membership of the CFA, Tony King – an outstanding achievement.