Page 1408 - Week 05 - Tuesday, 9 May 2017
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He was a big guy but he had a very big heart, and he will be deeply missed in this place and within our community. Our thoughts and our deepest condolences go to his family right now.
MS CHEYNE (Ginninderra) (10.26): I also rise today to pay tribute to Jayson Hinder and to offer my deep condolences, sympathy and support to his family and friends. Jayson was so many things to so many people: a member for Ginninderra; a proud resident of Canberra, including, as I understand it, Florey, Latham and Giralang in Belconnen; a community leader; a small businessman; a lover of motorbikes and rugby; a defender and promoter of this city and our community; a family man; and, as has oft been repeated already, larger than life.
Jayson was never without a grin, a cheeky joke or a nudge and a wink. He was generous with his time and with his spirit. I think it is safe to say that he liked testing the rules, and, as the opposition leader said, he was quite enterprising. He usually had a scheme or two underway that he was happy to tell you about over a pint of beer—something that spoke to his vision and to his ability to come up with solutions even in the toughest times. Nothing was too hard or too much effort for anybody; there was no problem that could not be solved.
Jayson was a deeply proud Labor man through and through. He was so proud to have followed in Mary Porter’s footsteps, filling the vacancy as the member for Ginninderra when she retired early last year. Knowing his commitment to Labor and the Labor movement and his deeply held Labor values, I expect it was one of the greatest honours for him in a life that was already full of remarkable achievements.
He was a supportive friend to me and greatly encouraged me to follow in his footsteps to become a member for Ginninderra while he contested the seat of Yerrabi. Even on election day last year, while many of us were stressed and thinking only of ourselves, he took a moment to send a text message expressing his confidence in the result, urging me to relax and enjoy the day and wishing me luck in the count.
Jayson’s love for and his commitment to the city of Canberra was legendary. This is the Jayson that I know and will remember. However, it is in seeking comfort over the past week, in reading the tributes online and bearing in mind the sheer number of people who have approached me and told me that they knew Jayson, that they counted him as a good friend and as a mate, that I have come to truly appreciate the extraordinary reach and extraordinary impact he had on so many people and on so many community organisations in Canberra.
Jayson said in his inaugural speech that he had a dogged refusal to accept the unacceptable. That Jayson’s life has ended prematurely is something I know that I and many others will have a difficult time accepting for a long time to come. There is a passage from the French writer Edouard Leve which gives me a lot of comfort, and it especially has over the past week. It is about how people we have lost continue to be with us and will continue to be with us for future generations, so long as we have stories to tell and we tell the stories about them, share the stories through generation
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