Dedication should be Margaret Boyd’s middle name.
The Woodcroft resident was named this year’s Coral McLean Award winner, recognised for her voluntary work with Rooty Hill Naval Association and The Children’s Hospital at Westmead.
Now in its second year, the award is in honour of the late Coral McLean, well-known as ‘‘the mother of Mount Druitt’’ who sacrificed more than 100,000 hours of her time to the community.
Coral’s youngest daughter Melissa attended last week’s ceremony in her mother’s honour.
Chifley MP Ed Husic instigated the award as part of International Women’s Day celebrations.
Rooty Hill Naval Association Robert Copper nominated Mrs Boyd for the Coral McLean award.
‘‘He asked if he could nominate me and I said no,’’ she said.
‘‘He did it anyway. It has made me feel very humble.’’
She’s also a tour guide at The Children’s Hospital at Westmead.
‘‘I’m lucky to work at a hospital with so many beautiful children who are inspirational,’’ she said.
‘‘My mum always said if you can make one person smile once a day, you’re doing OK.’’
Panel judge and Anglicare Mount Druitt manager Alice Wheatley said it was a tough decision.
‘‘There are so many people in our community who do good work,’’ she said.
‘‘Margaret’s work is different to Coral’s but it’s done in the same spirit.’’
Federal Health Minister Tanya Plibersek was a guest speaker.
‘‘Women have a lot to celebrate but we have to refocus on what we still have to work on,’’ she said.
‘‘If you look deeper at the statistics, one in three Australian women will suffer domestic violence, while one in five will be sexually assaulted.
‘‘Those statistics are unacceptable in our community.
‘‘We have achieved so much in my lifetime but we have such a long way to go.’’
An emotional Ambika Dhungyel received the Judges Commendation Award for her work in the Bhutanese community.
Liza Moscatelli was named Young Chifley Woman of the Year for her work in facilitating art workshops at Ted Noffs Foundation while Rita Tobin and Alicia Martin were Chifley Women of the Year joint winners.