Timeline for the Australian Lebanese Foundation

2009

May 2009

On 22nd May the Foundation held its Annual General Meeting where the new council for 2009 was voted in. Prof. Ghossayn presented the President’s Report and thanked all members for their support and contributions to the ongoing good work of the Foundation.

The Treasurer, Mr. Youssef, tabled the 2008 Financial Statements and gave a financial overview of the year. He reported a surplus for the year ending 31st December 2008 of $7,676.

Prof. Ghossayn expressed thanks and gratitude to Mr. Youssef for his fine effort of preparing the Financial Statement and Annual Report.

March 2009

On March 9th the ALF hosted the 2009 Scholarship Presentation Dinner in the extraordinary venue of MacLaurin Hall at The University of Sydney.

As guests arrived under the porch in the Main Quadrangle they were greeted by classical Lebanese aoud and flute playing musicians and offered drinks to start the evening before moving upstairs into the Hall and taking their seats.

After scholarship students were officially marched into the Hall, Her Excellency Prof. Marie Bashir AC CVO, Governor of NSW and Chancellor of the University acknowledged and thanked the 20 Scholarship Sponsors for their generous support, especially at this time of the financial downturn.

VIP guests included:
Dr. John Daniel, Ambassador of Lebanon; the Hon Richard Torbay MP & Speaker; the Hon Barbara Perry MP; the Hon John Ajaka MLC; the Hon Edward Obeid MLC.

Guest speakers were:
Dr. Michael Spence, Vice Chancellor and Principle of The University of Sydney, Mr. John Symond, Executive Chairman, Aussie Home Loans and Ms. Gemma Khaicy, scholarship recipient representing students.

After guests enjoyed a fine meal the Governor individually congratulated and handed students their scholarship certificate while also presenting their sponsors with a plaque of appreciation.

This occasion was the perfect opportunity to publicly thank the Commonwealth Bank of Australia for their continued pledge of major sponsorship into 2010 and the Governor presented a plaque of commemoration to bank executives Geoff Wearne, George Siderovski and Fawaz Sankari.

Representatives from the Lebanese print and radio media and SBS attended, and covered the event.


Once again it was a memorable evening, with numerous guests reporting on the high quality of the event. The ALF council would like to thank guests for their support.

February 2009

On Friday 6^th February 6-8pm the Foundation invited the public to a free lecture by Michel Moawad in the Eastern Avenue Lecture Theatre, The University of Sydney. Michel is a prominent Lebanese political figure and member of the leading team of a major political alliance.

He is the son of late Lebanese President René Moawad who was elected in 1989 and assassinated 17 days later, and of Nayla Moawad currently an MP, a minister in the Lebanese Government and a leading political figure as well. Michel has published studies on Lebanon and Radical Islam and is a very active non-profit organisations founder and leader.

Lebanon’s Future: Threats and Opportunities

Lebanon has become the focal point of the Middle East crisis which is itself now a serious global concern. Despite all the suffering brought by the internal conflicts and the wars of others on its land, Lebanon has many times astounded the world with its ability to be re-born from the ashes and keep a vibrant democracy despite all odds. Michel Moawad’s lecture is directly focused on the heart of Lebanon’s specificity and unveils the future vision of a new generation of Lebanese political men.

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