Church leader Pastor Hans van Asselt and local environmental and dolphin advocate Sally Kirby have been recognised by Mayor Rhys Williams as Mandurah’s latest Local Legends for their contribution to the local community.
Pastor van Asselt was recognised for his many years of community work through Mandurah Baptist Church, his involvement in the Bridge Builders charity group, and taking a lead role in forming a new community network.
Originally from the Netherlands, Pastor van Asselt spent many years working with youth and as a High School Chaplain in the Armadale area before moving to Mandurah in the late 90s to become the Senior Pastor at Mandurah Baptist Church. The well-regarded Pastor is finishing up from this position in July, taking long service leave and then continuing his community work.
Over the years, he has married, baptised, buried and supported hundreds of community members through the church, and in establishing two other churches in the Peel area under the banner of 1Church. Pastor van Asselt has also been a long-time leader of non-profit charity group Bridge Builders, which was founded in 2006 from 1Church.
Bridge Builders is dedicated to funding and delivering charitable services to those who need assistance, and is predominantly known for food services in the community. Their work also includes supporting local school children with school supplies and clothing, and “building bridges” by connecting people in need to support services.
Recently, Pastor van Asselt has taken a lead role in establishing a new community group in Mandurah, the Greenfields Community Network. This group includes other churches, services, organisations and residents from the Greenfields area.
The group aims to promote, develop and create opportunities for residents and families in the Greenfields area to connect with their local community agencies and service providers. The network is also looking at how to maximise the impact of support services in the area, and aims to bridge the gap between service providers and those in need.
Mayor Rhys Williams congratulated Pastor van Asselt on his many years of leadership in the community and helping people in various ways. “Pastor van Asselt has made a huge difference in the community through his role at Mandurah Baptist Church, and all the amazing community outreach and support that comes with that,” Mayor Williams said.
“We wish him well in his retirement later in the year and know that his legacy will live on in the many great programs he’s helped to deliver.”
For the past 25 years, Mandurah resident Sally Kirby has been a passionate guardian of local dolphins, as well as a tireless advocate for environmental protection. Sally has spent more than two decades assisting with dolphin rescues and strandings, and is renowned for her work with the Mandurah Volunteer Dolphin Rescue Group monitoring the health and wellbeing of local bottlenose dolphins.
As a result of countless hours helping Mandurah’s local treasures, Sally knows many of the dolphins by name just from a glance. The volunteer rescue group monitors the dolphin population in the Peel-Harvey Estuary and surrounding coastal waters, checking their health and responding to calls about stranded, sick, injured, entangled or deceased dolphins. The group works closely with researchers from Murdoch University on the Mandurah Dolphin Research Project.
Over the years, Sally has worked collaboratively with many local environment groups to support initiatives including clean-up days and community education. She has been a driving force behind the installation of fishing line bins around the local estuaries, and is part of the Clean Waterways Campaign.
Mayor Rhys Williams said Sally’s wisdom, humility and passion to preserve Mandurah’s waterways, and the species that rely on them, make her incredibly worthy of this award. “Our beautiful population of dolphins is just one of the reasons Mandurah is such a special place, and we’re lucky enough to have dedicated, caring people to look out for these amazing creatures,” Mayor Williams said. “Together with her husband Harry and community members, Sally makes a remarkable contribution to the health and wellbeing of the dolphins.”
