Filipino-Australian leader Miriam Cocking honoured by FECCA for decades of multicultural service

Miriam Cocking, president of the Multicultural Communities Council of South Australia, was recognised with a FECCA lifetime membership honour at the opening reception of the FECCA National Conference at Old Parliament House in Canberra on 14 October.

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Filipino-Australian community leader Miriam Cocking received a lifetime membership honour at the Federation of Ethnic Communities' Councils of Australia (FECCA) National Conference in Canberra, The Philippine Times reported on 21 October. The recognition was presented at the conference's opening reception at Old Parliament House on 14 October, attended by Governor-General Sam Mostyn.

In her speech that evening, the Governor-General said she had the privilege, as FECCA's new patron, of presenting three FECCA life memberships recognising years of remarkable service. SBS Filipino also reported Cocking's recognition from the Governor-General in its coverage of Filipino-Australian delegates at the conference.

Cocking is president of the Multicultural Communities Council of South Australia (MCCSA) and a member of FECCA's national board. According to The Philippine Times, she arrived in South Australia from the Philippines in 1981 as the state's 600th skilled migrant from the Philippines, and is a qualified teacher who began volunteering two days after settling in Australia.

She joined MCCSA in 1983 and became its chairperson in 2015, with advocacy covering education, healthcare, aged care, migrant settlement, women's leadership and domestic violence prevention. The Philippine Times reported that she has been involved with the Filipino Community Council of South Australia, community broadcasting through Radio 5EBI, and the Australian Foundation for Learning in the Philippines.