Parents seek wetlands tribute for Rose
Rose McMahon had a special connection with nature and people. Her parents Chris and Katrin hope a legacy in Rose's honour will finance environmental initiatives in Baw Baw Shire and Wilsons Promontory National Park, beginning with a tribute in the Bellbird Park wetlands area.
Rose, 7, died in a road accident at the Tidal River campground in October last year.
A day earlier the grade two St Ita's Primary School student had been planting trees with her parents near Tidal River as part of a regeneration project.
Chris and Katrin recently presented a submission to council, callingfor a commit ment to the landscape plan adopted for Bellbird Park West. Through their small charity - Rose's Legacy of Love - they want to financially contribute to the development of Bellbird Park West by establishing a memorial bench, art installation and tree planting day.
After Rose's death, Katrin said they received an outpouring of sympathy and love from her friends and family and the many community organisations she was involved in including St Ita's Primary School Drouin, Oak Street Kindergarten and Good Start Childcare, Orca swim school, Warragul Gymnastics, Drouin Dragons and St Vincent de Paul as well as groups including Friends of Drouin's Trees and Friends of the Prom.
"As Rose lived a life loving and caring for the people, nature, and animals around her, we set up Rose's Legacy of Love. In Rose's spirit we hope to share the generous donations to aid community and environmental initiatives across the shire and beyond.
"We would like to honour our beautiful daughter and the love and support our community has shown us. It would be wonderful to have a place to honour Rose and the community around her," Katrin said.
Chris described their daughter as "one-ofa-kind, funny, smart beautiful inside and out, inclusive."
"She perceived the world differently, saw the good in people and the beauty in nature. We really enjoyed our walks together in nature, and it was beautiful to see the world and nature through the eyes of my beautiful child Rose.
"We as a family are very proud to be Drouin residents, Rose would proudly introduce herself as Rose McMahon from Drouin," he said.
Chris said Bellbird Park and its walking tracks were like an adventure park for Rose where she would stop to look at bugs, worms, lizards, birds and animals, talk about the trees and admire the king parrots. "We as a family would often walk and go on adventures through Bellbird Park West with our dog Leo.
Chris said the legacy Rose left him was a connection with nature and people and they wanted to honour that.
"I have learnt from Rose and local people that caring, being brave, and standing up to be heard can make a difference.
"Rose's legacy is not a plaque or a piece of art or a bench in a park.
Her legacy is looking at the world and nature in a different way and understanding that If we view the world differently and have courage, that we can in some small way make the world or our local area a better place," he said.
The McMahons have asked council to bring Bellbird Park West to life as per the landscape plan adopted by council in July 2020.
Council has allocated $40,000 in its draft budget for the design of the wetlands.
But, Chris asked council to commit to funding the staged works outlined in the landscape plan rather than more design work.
He said paths, walkways and platforms were urgently needed Bellbird Park West is a very unique area and we need to urgently protect these high value areas from further degradation and rehabilitate the wetlands.
"The area is a sanctuary for the local wildlife displaced and under pressure from habitat loss due to development, invasive species and predators.
"The existing landscape plan is great, it just needs to be rolled out and funding allocated for it to happen," he said.