Lasercraft’s 30th-anniversary celebration

To celebrate our 30th-anniversary milestone, Lasercraft held a birthday celebration on 28 August 2018 for parents, carers, supported employees, staff, key clients, and local VIPs.

Lucy Wicks MP, Federal Member for Robertson, gave a powerful introductory speech, praising Lasercraft for enhancing the lives of so many people living with disabilities on the Central Coast. She made particular reference to the longevity of employment amongst our supported workers with some having been employed by Lasercraft for 15 to 20 years.

Lucy’s speech was followed by inspiring speeches by two of Lasercraft’s supported employees – Tim Hemphill and Keira George. Tim and Keira shared their personal experiences at Lasercraft and explained their roles as Employee Reps, a peer-elected role which includes presenting reports to the Board of Directors.

Parents Peter Atton and Karen Schofield relayed their thanks to Lasercraft for the opportunities their children had been given to learn, build friendships, develop confidence, and add purpose to their lives. It was heart-warming to hear of the outstanding achievements of their children, demonstrating just how many potential people with disabilities have if they are given the support network and learning opportunities to grow, particularly as members of mainstream society.

Chair of Lasercraft, Peter Bayley was contagious in his enthusiasm for the role of Lasercraft in fulfilling the vision of the founders. As he shared the goals of Lasercraft to grow the business to support more disabled employees, he described the genuine difference Lasercraft makes to individual lives. He urged everyone to visit Lasercraft to see the smiles on the faces of our supported employees as they engage with their peers and relish the opportunity to be productive members of the community.

Our celebration included a tour of the facility where supported employees perform a range of tasks from process work, mail fulfilment, office duties, cleaning and banking through to more complex work with timber and acrylic materials in the workshop and production room.

Thank you to all the parents and carers of our supported employees who were able to join us to celebrate this wonderful occasion.