BASE Service’s found Tiff Spary named 2024 Toowoomba Citizen of the Year

Australia ticked passed 27 million residents this week, placing more demand on housing than ever before as thousands of people slip through the cracks. Helping them put their lives back together has earned a Toowoomba woman our city’s highest honour.

The past week a homeless family car arrived at Base Services, but the parents were not looking for help.

Instead they were there to make a donation.

It was their children’s pet fish and their fish tank – creatures that were not suitable for a family sleeping in their car.

“Every day we see heart breaking stuff like that,” BASE Services founder Tiff Spary said.

”But I also see the power of the community.”

“I see people donating time, money and household items, I see volunteers helping out, I see neighbour’s taking in a family because they have been evicted.”

Along with her husband Nat, Tiff has dedicated her life to helping some of the most disadvantaged people in our community, and that dedication was recognised on Friday when Ms Spary was named Toowoomba’s Citizen of the Year.

Tiffany Spary, of BASE Services, is the Toowoomba Citizen of the Year presented at Toowoomba Australia Day Awards at Picnic Point, Friday, January 26, 2024. Picture: Kevin Farmer

“I was very shocked as I was not expecting to win the award,” she said.

“It was very humbling because we have a lot of people in our city who do amazing things.”

Located at the bottom end of Neil Street, Base Services is a not-for-profit, community development organisation, that works with individuals and families in need in Toowoomba.

It supports people who are homeless or at risk of falling into homelessness, along with those who suffer from mental health issues, substance addiction and behavioral issues or trauma as a result of abuse, family violence, separation, grief or loss.

Ms Spray said homelessness was a growing concern and one that needed to be addressed.

“The average homeless person is a parent with 4-5 kids and that breaks my heart,” she said.

“Homelessness is solvable and sometimes it is as simple as helping a person do a rental application or get identification.

“We can all do other things to help other people, When I was growing up in Meringandan we only had two television channels, we were limited to showers because we always had drought and I remember how members of the community helped one another.

“That is what we need to do now.”

Toowoomba Australia Day Award Winners, 2024

Citizen of the Year: Tiffany Spary

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Citizen of the Year: Janet Suey

W. H. Groom Scholarship: Max Corfield

Young Citizen of the Year: Lena Nabizada

Cultural Award: Yajuvendrasinh Mahida

Senior Sport Award: David Natalier

Junior Sport Award: Bianca Markham

Community Event: David Hack Classic

Community Group: Base Services Inc.

Originally published as BASE Service’s found Tiff Spary named 2024 Toowoomba Citizen of the Year