by Bonnie Collings
Volunteers, special guests and car enthusiasts came together at the Trafalgar Holden Museum on Thursday for the official opening of the Neil Joiner Holden Heritage Centre.
Named in honour of museum founder the late Neil Joiner, the new two-storey centre houses a collection of preserved cars and a mezzanine floor dedicated to the history of Holden in Australia.
Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events Steve Dimopoulos joined the Trafalgar Holden Museum team for the official opening and ribbon cutting.
Trafalgar Holden Museum president Jenny Middleton and secretary and Neil's daughter Anne Schembri said completing and opening the new centre was a "big relief."
"We're very proud that we've got it done," Anne said. "Dad would just be absolutely rapt with it, he really would."
"It was Neil's dream for a long time, this is the last piece of land he could build on," Jenny said. "And he covered every inch of it," Anne added.
During her speech at the opening, Jenny explained how the idea for the centre came about. "A few years ago, Neil got a call from GMH (General Motors Holden), asking if we could house a few of their cars," Jenny said. "That was the moment we realised, we were going to need a bigger shed!"
In 2022, the Trafalgar Holden Museum received a $417,000 grant from the state government's Regional Tourism Investment Fund to aid in the creation of the heritage centre.
"Four years, six months and five days ago, our grants manager began the process of applying for tourism grants," Jenny said. "We were thrilled to be successful. I still remember Neil's phone call, you could hear his smile all the way down the phone."
"This is a significant grant, it helped us to preserve Australian motoring history, provide a great experience for our visitors, and continue to be a key part of regional tourism in Gippsland," Jenny said.
"It's been a very long process, and it's just a damn shame that Neil wasn't here to see it. But I think we've been able to showcase a lot and he'd be so proud."
The upstairs floor of the Neil Joiner Holden Heritage Centre houses a number of booths dedicated to the history of Holden in Australia. From Bathurst and Peter Brock to home appliances made by Frigidaire, the booths showcase all things Holden and General Motors.
"Neil had a vision for a long time, and it was his dream to have a mezzanine floor for all the artefacts," Jenny said.
"He managed to find so much Holden history that nobody knew about, you wouldn't know Holden made all these things," Anne added.
Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events Steve Dimopoulos described the Trafalgar Holden Museum as an "Australian asset".
"Neil collected so much over so long, but it wasn't just cars, it was anything to do with Holden," Mr Dimopoulos said.
"Holden is big part of Australia's identity, this museum is an Australian asset. We're really proud as a Victorian government that we were able to contribute some money towards the uplift."
Mr Dimopoulos emphasised the important role the museum played in regional Victorian tourism.
"We know people will come here (Trafalgar) for the Trafalgar Holden Museum, then they'll stay and spend money at the pub, or they stay at local accommodation," he said.
"It is important that people from Melbourne, people from interstate come and visit regional Victoria, spend money in the local economy. Tens of thousands of jobs are reliant on tourism in regional Victoria and we want to continue to support that."