You don’t spend more than 50 years placing yourself between a heritage building and a bulldozer, helping bring cancer treatment machines closer to home or fighting to keep Bulli Pass bushland out of developers’ hands unless you care deeply about where you live.

For Paul Tuckerman, that place is the Northern Illawarra – and his decades of tireless community work in Thirroul have been recognised with a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM), announced in the 2025 King’s Birthday Honours List.

Born in 1940 at Coledale Hospital, Paul has lived in the Northern Illawarra all his life, contributing to the Thirroul area in a variety of roles, including as a president of a railway preservation society, a Labor Party president, hospital chairman and Catholic parishioner.

“People have been very supportive of all of the endeavours that I’ve been involved in,” Paul says. “Whatever I’ve done for the community, I’ve certainly not thought of any reward or award, so I’m a bit taken aback by the fact that it has all been officially recognised.

“I'm very grateful to whomever it was that nominated my cause for consideration. I’ve been doing this now for way over 50 years and, as an older man, I think it’s good for people coming on to realise that some people did things that have made North Illawarra a better place and, from that point of view, the award is a good thing, as it highlights what people have been able to do and achieve.”

'A building dear to my heart'

Paul was a founding member of the Thirroul Railway Institute Preservation Society [TRIPS] in 1991, and continued as president for almost 30 years, until 2020. He is an active member of the Thirroul Village Committee, and has worked to improve and preserve Thirroul over the years.

“My support for the Railway Institute heritage building Thirroul continues," Paul says. "That’s a building that’s dear to my heart. I saved it from demolition by standing up against the bulldozer blade and then, from 1976 to 1991, I convinced the members of the Federal Labor Party branch to support me in restoring the building."

Paul was secretary/treasurer of the Australian Labor Party's Thirroul branch from 1967, and then served as president from 1980 to 2007. He was awarded life membership of the NSW branch in 2007.

“We restored it, then it was fit for use by the community and so we established the Thirroul Railway Institute Preservation Society, which is a broad-based community group now. At the most recent management meeting, it was reported that there are 140 financial members of TRIPS,” Paul says.

“There’s 140 people out there in the community, who are prepared to pay $10 a year to support the task of maintaining a heritage building and keeping it presentable for people to use, and that’s exactly what they do - there’s people using the hall seven days a week. 

"It’s a community facility that is appreciated by different groups who benefit from the fact that we saved it from demolition.”

From 1973 to 1983, Paul served on the board of Coledale hospital, and was deputy chairman from 1978 to 1982, chairman in 1982. From 1983 to 1986, he served as Deputy Chair for Illawarra Area Health Service, a role that stands out for Paul as particularly rewarding.

“We were fundraising with the community for a linear accelerator at Wollongong Hospital, for cancer treatment. I was able to contribute to that, and in fact the community was able to fundraise to purchase two linear accelerators - that was a real achievement, to be a part of that fundraising closer to home.” Paul says.

Paul has been involved with the local community as a parishioner at Parish of St Michael since the 1980s, and volunteers at St Michael’s Parents and Friends Association and other like-minded groups today. 

He has been a member of the Order of the Knights of the Southern Cross since 1974, on the state and national councils for more than 20 years. He also served as the secretary of Bulli Pass Scenic Reserve Trust from 1974 to 1989.

Paul is proud of his work to protect his local area, particularly Bulli Pass.

“That area along the top of the escarpment from Bulli Pass to Sublime Point, and a little bit north towards Maddens Plains, there was an area of land privately owned, lots 3 to 14, and we were able to gradually purchase one of those lots over each year through grants from the NSW government,” Paul says.

“So all of that escarpment land from north of Panorama [House] to Sublime Point became part of the Bulli Scenic Reserve area, and was subsequently transferred into the national park, and when you look at that escarpment, it’s beautiful natural environment, and that’s a great benefit to the people of the Illawarra.

"You look at that now and see it’s unscathed natural beauty - it’s just wonderful.”