It was an afternoon of celebration on Monday 13th November as we welcomed the winners of our inaugural 'Police in the Community' Photography Competition to the VPL office for a special VIP Awards Ceremony. Excitement filled the air as guests arrived, eager to view the many outstanding entries on display.
Congratulations to our overall major prize winner and category winner - Resilience, Jesse Wray-McCann, who was ecstatic to walk away with a Canon EOS M50II camera sponsored by Photography Studies College (Melbourne), along with a $100 Momento Photobook voucher and an A2 print of his winning entry.
Congratulations to our three category winners; Kureng Dapel - Relationships, Jesse Wray-McCann – Resilience, and Senior Constable Emma Maynard, Inspector Chris Allen and Shirley McKenzie – Remembrance, who won a $200 voucher sponsored by Kayell, a Canon “Selphy” home photo printer sponsored by PSC and an A3 print of their winning entry.
A very special mention to our three Victoria Police Legacy Patron’s (CCP) award winners who were presented their awards by Deputy Commissioner Ross Guenther, representing the CCP; Holly Lembke – Relationships, John Todor – Resilience and Peter Bellion APM – Remembrance, who received a $100 Momento Photobook voucher sponsored by PSC and an A3 print of their winning entry.
Congratulations to the Victoria Police Legacy Chair’s Award recipients, winning trio Senior Constable Emma Maynard, Inspector Chris Allen and Police Legatee Shirley McKenzie, who were presented with an Entourage Travel package voucher and an A3 print by VPL Chair Inspector Kate O’Neill, who joined us on the day via Microsoft Teams. Kate introduced her award with the very poignant quote “Photography is a way of feeling, of touching, of loving. What you have caught on film is captured forever… it remembers the little things, long after you have forgotten everything”.
The image that Senior Constable Emma Maynard captured was of Police Legatee Shirley McKenzie standing outside the Whittlesea Police Station where her late husband Alastair worked for many years. Alistair and Shirley’s service to the community should always be remembered.
A huge thanks once again to our major sponsors Photography Studies College and Melbourne Headshot Company, and to our 2023 judging panel including Former Victorian Emergency Services Commissioner Bruce Esplin AM, Robyn Campbell from Melbourne Headshot Company and Sarina Lirosi from Photography Studies College, and to our supporting partners Entourage Travel, Kayell Australia and Momento for donating some amazing prizes.
Finally, and most importantly, a massive thank you to everyone who entered the VPL ‘Police in the Community’ Photography Competition. We were impressed by the quality and depth of work submitted across the three categories. It’s not always an easy thing to share your work in a public forum and we hope you got something out of the process.
We look forward to and encourage all to consider entering the Victoria Police Legacy Photography Competition in 2024. For those that entered this year, we look forward to seeing what you produce next year! Stay tuned...