The hard work and dedication of the Somerset region’s longest serving Justices of the Peace was recognised in a special event hosted by the Member for Nanango, Deb Frecklington.
Deb Frecklington held the special event in Esk on 19th July to thank and congratulate 25 Somerset JP’s from within the Nanango Electorate who collectively have served the community for 735 years.
"This is a very special group of people. All have volunteered for more than 25 years to serve the community as a Justice of the Peace, and several have reached the 40 year service milestone," Mrs Frecklington said.
"We also have one award for Mr John O’Keefe of Esk, who has offered his time as a JP for more than 60 years.
"It is so important that we recognise local JP’s, who dedicate so much of their time to supporting members of the community when they need help with documents, at often very important moments of their life," she said.
Shadow Attorney-General and Member for Toowoomba South, David Janetzki, was a special guest at the event and helped present the awards.
"When you add up the years of service this group of JP’s has provided, you can see how important their role is in regional areas like this. It’s obvious they have built a level of trust in the community and people rely on them for guidance and assistance when they need it," Mr Janetzki said.
"They are the quiet achievers," he said.
John O’Keefe, the longest serving JP of the group said he took on the volunteer role in 1952 when he lived in NSW, and was then registered in Queensland in 1955.
"I’ve enjoyed every minute of it. You meet wonderful people," Mr O’Keefe said.
"The most common documents I help with are property transfers and Wills. The best thing that happened during my time as a JP was the introduction of a JP Rubber Stamp. That saved a lot of extra writing!" he said.
