Councillor Veronica Gossink has lived in the northern suburbs of Adelaide for most of her life and moved to the Playford area six years ago as a lifestyle choice for her family.

The Hillbank area was close to work, school and extended family – being the ideal location to settle with her husband and children.

“When we came up here and had a look, we just thought this place is magnificent – a real gem,” Cr Gossink said. “My family and I love to ride our bikes around the area, we’ve got lots of walking trails, particularly up through Jo Gapper and through the back of Hillbank there are beautiful bushlands.”

And family has always inspired her with Veronica’s two grandparents dedicating their lives to their community also as Councillors.

“My grandmother and grandfather, nan and pop, were both in the Hindmarsh Council for many, many years, and it’s probably one of the reasons I thought I can do this,” she said. “They loved it and were just everyday people. “I had a lot of the qualities they had with wanting to be involved in the things that happened, the decisions that are made in the community, on that real local level.”

Cr Gossink was elected to Council for Ward 3 in 2018 as she strived to help further develop connectedness within her community.

Whether that was through her school community as a teacher, developing a business with assistance of the Stretton Centre or the sporting community through her son’s soccer club, the Northern Wolves, Cr Gossink said building the community through families was important.

“Working with families and working with children, watching them grow and watching them thrive and connect with all that there is to offer has been something that I have done for almost 30 years of my teaching career,” she said. “So for me it is actually about building community through family and that’s what I looked for when I moved here. “In Playford we have so many young families, it’s a really rich and alive community.”

In order to support this vision, Cr Gossink said it was vital to listen to our community to help build its vision.

“While I feel it is important we have the grassroots infrastructure, I think we have another role to engage citizens,” she said. “Many people choose to live in an area because they want to connect in some way, so for me it’s about how to support community to connect. “Opportunities for businesses to come in that support recreation, entertainment and events, where community get a chance to build relationships with one another and become part of an extended family.”

Further developing a community that is engaged with one another to create safe and nurturing environments is her top priority.

“The future of Playford looks vibrant and busy,” she said. “We are at a really exciting time for growth and being able to plan how it looks. “We have so many incredible opportunities with so many new families coming into this Council. “As an Elected Member, now is an amazing time to be involved shaping how this Council will look in 2 years, 5 years, 20 years’ time. “It’s not about me, it’s about my children and their children and making sure we have this incredible foundation for them.”