CITIZEN OF THE YEAR AWARD CASE

In 1983 John Christmass was awarded the Western Australian Citizen of the Year for his outstanding and enduring contribution to the advancement of the culture and the arts in Western Australia. The awards were started in 1973 and are presented on the first weekend of June when the state celebrates Western Australia Day (formerly Foundation Day).
John Christmass moved to the Kelmscott area in the 1970s. John had taught music since the 1940s and later joined the Department of Education and was in charge of their choral music program.
In 1985 he retired from the education department and focussed his time on teaching and promoting music from his Kelmscott office. From there he managed the I Voci Choir which was made up of past students from Perth Modern School aged 18-30.
John was the musical director for the Perth Anzac Day Services from 1971 to the early 2000s, he started the 1st Vienna Pops concert and the Best of British concert at the Perth Concert Hall in c1987 and 1991 respectively to help raise money for Rotary. He directed his last in 2013 and 2012. He was presented with the Order of Australia in 2012, for his services to music, plus many other local and state awards over the years.
Locally he directed many concerts, taught music, advocated for a concert venue in the City of Armadale and was a strong advocate for the local art and culture scene.
The award provides a connection to the long and distinguished career of John Christmass who has played an important role in music education as well as promoting music and choral music in Western Australia. John has also managed to raise many hundreds of thousands of dollars for charity.