The final council meeting for the current group of councillors was held this week, and for some it was their final council meeting ever.
Hold tight - we’re checking permissions before loading more content
Seema Abdullah, Greg James and Geoff Dobson are all putting down their local government titles and are not standing in the upcoming election.
Each of the retirees had an opportunity to say a goodbye speech during the October council meeting.
Cr Abdullah thanked the people around her in both her professional and personal lives.
“It’s hard to believe my time in this room has come to an end after eight fulfilling years,” she said.
“I am deeply grateful for the opportunities, challenges and, most importantly, the amazing people I’ve worked with.”
She acknowledged the “unwavering support” of her husband and her children, and thanked her friends and her allies.
She also gave recognition to the Shepparton community.
“To my community, your resilience and spirit have been truly inspiring,” she said.
“I also want to give special thanks to those I have worked closely with, including during my time as mayor.
“I am proud of what we have accomplished together.”
Cr Abdullah finished her speech by thanking current council chief executive Fiona Le Gassick and all council executives and staff.
“As I move forward, I carry the lessons, the experiences and amazing friendships that I have gained,” she said.
“This is not just a goodbye, it’s a heartfelt thank you to all of you.
“I wish you all the best and I hope that this council will continue to make a real impact.”
Cr James acknowledged the unprecedented times endured during this current council term.
“It's been an eventful four years,“ Cr James said.
“There were many external challenges that this current council has faced in regards to the pandemic, the floods, the increasing cost of living.
“To work with these, my fellow councillors, has been an absolute honour and a privilege.”
He mirrored the words of thanks from Cr Abdullah and also discussed his achievement of being a first of a kind.
“I felt very proud of that, being the first Indigenous councilman, and I cherished that right throughout, and I’m very honoured with that, too,” he said.
“I want to thank the community of our region for initially voting for me and giving me the opportunity to be a voice on the council.
“I was very honoured with that, and I still am, and I always will be.”
Cr James looked back on his time at the table and said he had “thoroughly enjoyed” the past four years.
“It has provided me with an opportunity to see just how great this region is,” he said.
Cr Dobson began his final minutes on council by thanking his fellow councillors.
“We’ve had to have an understanding of each other and of how we operate,” he said.
“We have to display empathy towards one another to ensure that we get the best out of one another.”
He spent the majority of his time thanking the executive team and going through each member.
“I want to now direct my remarks to the people who really are the heart and soul, in my opinion, of this organisation, and that is our management team,” Cr Dobson said.
“We are only able to decide on issues on the strength of the information that is supplied by management.
“If we didn’t have that depth of analysis of research, we wouldn’t be able to make a decision, good or bad, and I think that can’t be understated.”
He closed off his speech by thanking Ms Le Gassick and Mayor Shane Sali.
“Last but not least, I now come to Fiona Le Gassick ... the openness that you’ve demonstrated to the councillors, I think, is beyond reproach,” he said.
“You set the bar very, very high, and I congratulate you on that, and I thank you for what you’ve done.
“For one final time, thank you, Mayor Sali.”
To listen to the councillors’ full speeches, the October council meeting can be found on the Greater Shepparton City Council Facebook page.
Cadet Journalist