By Kyra Gillespie
Long-time Berwick local Karen Chipperfield is vying for a seat in the upper house to represent the Eastern Victoria region on a Liberal ticket in the state election this week.
Calling the region home for generations, Ms Chipperfield’s family are a fixture of the Berwick community.
“I’ve been living in the area for more than 40 years and my family have been here since the late 1930s. My granddad moved here during the Great Depression to be a dairy farmer, and since then my family have shifted through farming, market gardeners and beyond,” Ms Chipperfield said.
The mother of two is a third generation member of the Berwick Show Society, secretary of the Parents and Friends Association at her kids’ school and treasurer of the Australian Welsh Black Cattle Society.
She runs a small rural fencing construction company alongside her husband Tim, and has worked with Monash Health and for Brad Battin MP’s office.
Ms Chipperfield officially joined the political race six weeks ago and is running against forty-six candidates for the Eastern Victoria upper house region.
“I work part-time for Brad Battin and have been a member of the Liberal party since 2010. When the party asked me to stand for the upper house ticket for such a broad country area I knew I had what it takes to represent the community.
“Because I live in the urban and my passion is in the rural I feel that I understand the many needs of this region.
“I bring different strengths to the upper house – being a parent, a small business owner, involved in the rural industry and having teenage children, I think I tick quite a few of the boxes for a broad focus of representation.”
Ms Chipperfield joined the Liberal ranks because she “believes in Liberal values”, particularly Matthew Guy’s plans to decentralise jobs and populations throughout Victoria.
“The needs of the area tie in with the Liberals’ plans for decentralisation; moving employment opportunities to rural centres like Traralgon and improving regional rail lines will help young people access work and education without having to travel long distances.”
The working mother also backs the Liberal Party’s hard-line approach to crime.
“You need to be accountable for your actions; that’s why I think we need a strong justice system.
“It’s heartbreaking to hear about people who have their homes broken into and cars stolen.
“It’s not the Aussie way, and we need these people to be held accountable.”
The region has five members, of which Labor currently has two, with one each for the Liberals, Nationals and Shooters, Fishers and Shooters parties.
