Community Volunteers given top Australia Day accolade

A Mackay teenager passionate about raising awareness about cancer and a dedicated community campaigner have been recognised in the 2012 Mackay Regional Council Australia Day awards.

Greg Sutherland has been named the region’s Citizen of the Year, while Cale Hutchins is the 2012 Young Citizen of the Year.

Mayor Col Meng said both men thoroughly deserve the region’s top honour.

“This duo typifies the Aussie spirit of selflessly giving up their time to help others in the community,” he said.

Greg Sutherland is the Chairman of the Mackay Stadium Committee, President of the Mackay Rotary Club and Chairman of the Mackay Aboriginal and Islanders Development Association.

For over a decade Mr Sutherland has led the campaign for a new sports stadium in Mackay. In 2011 his hard work and never give-up attitude paid off, with the completion of a new stadium where local, national and international games of rugby league can be played.

Cr Meng said Greg also dedicates much of his time to supporting the Indigenous communities in Mackay with skills training and employment assistance.

“Our community is a much better place thanks to people like Cale who fight for the community’s needs,” Cr Meng said.

Cale Hutchins has helped to raise the profile of cancer and cancer research in Mackay and is also the secretary of the Marian Community Working Group.

Cale was the driving force behind the inaugural Pioneer Valley Relay for Life in which $45,000 was raised for the Cancer Council of Queensland.

“Cale is an exceptional role model for today’s youth and has certainly made a significant contribution to our community.”

Both recipients will attend Australia Day celebrations tomorrow and join 15 others who will be presented with Australia Day Awards for their hard work and dedication to our region.

Australia Day Awards will be presented at celebrations in the Pioneer Valley (Finch Hatton Showgrounds), Sarina (the Sarina Cultural Hall) and Mackay (the Mackay Entertainment and Convention Centre).

As part of our Australia Day celebrations Mackay Regional Council held a Skype Link up with our Matsuura Sister City. The link up, involving members of the Mackay-Matsuura Sister City committee took place at 2pm January 25 to provide information on the meaning of Australia Day and what we actually do on the day.

2012 AWARD WINNERS FOR EACH AREA:

Mackay 

Citizen of the Year: Greg Sutherland

For the last 10 years Greg has been campaigning for the Mackay Stadium and in 2011 his hard work and dedication were paid off. The Mackay region has a new 15,000 seat stadium where local, national and even international games of rugby league can be played. While still chairing the Stadium Committee and recovering from extreme ill health Greg took on the role of President of the Rotary Club of Mackay for a second term. Greg enjoys helping local schools and not-for-profit organisations and is also a key advocate for supporting the Indigenous communities in Mackay. Greg is the Chairman of the Mackay Aboriginal and Islanders Development Association, CEO of Skills Training Mackay and was awarded the 2011 NAIDOC Award for “Outstanding Contributions to the Indigenous Community.” 

Young Citizen of the Year: Cale Hutchins 

At only 17 years of age Cale is a credit to himself, his family and is a shining example of an outstanding Young Citizen. In 2011 Cale was the driving force behind planning and preparing everything for the inaugural Pioneer Valley Relay for Life event in which over $45,000 was raised for the Cancer Council of Queensland for cancer research and education programs. Awareness of cancer and funding for cancer research is close to Cale’s heart as his mother passed away in 2009 from pancreatic cancer. He is also the secretary of the Marian Community Working Group, a newly formed development committee aimed at improving the quality of life for residents in Marian.

Community Event of the Year: Habana Carols Under the Stars

2012 will mark the 20^th year for the Habana Carols Under the Stars community event. This event is a100 per cent free community event and is put on by the Habana and District Progress Association. The Association recognise that at Christmas time there is a lot of expense, so they pride themselves in making it a good old-fashioned free family friendly event. The event originally began with some residents driving around Habana singing carols on the back of a ute and has turned into a huge Christmas celebration. 

Community Volunteer Award: Jean Bourke

If you are looking for a volunteer who will turn up to every meeting and selflessly dedicate their time to fundraising efforts and helping those in need, Jean Bourke is your lady. Jean has worked as a volunteer at the Base Hospital Red Cross Kiosk for 31 years and is still a working member of the Queensland Country Woman’s Association. As Vice President of the Pioneer Division of the Queensland Country Women’s Association Jean helps organise fundraising activities to support the Ruth Fair Fax House in Brisbane, deliver birthing kits Overseas and supply t-shirts, booties and bonnets for newborns in hospitals. When Jean isn’t busy knitting or fundraising she is organising social outings for the Legacy War Wives. 

Cultural Award: Alex Cameron

For 65 years Alex has been contributing significantly to piping and the Mackay District Pipe Band, performing for countless community events and teaching new pipers how to play. Through his playing at special events including ANZAC Day, festivals, weddings and other celebrations he has raised a significant amount of money which has been donated to the band. At 82 years of age Alex still holds the position of custodian of the band and continues to support the band by playing at private functions. Alex is also an active member of the Friends of the Theatre and volunteers at about 30 shows a year – his latest being seven sessions at Ice City at the Mackay Entertainment and Convention Centre.

Junior Sports Award: Liam Mumford

Liam is an outstanding all round athlete; however his true passion is running and this is where he has gained his highest representative honours. During 2011 Liam competed at the State Cross Country Championships where he finished fifth, gaining selection in the Queensland Team. He also won the prestigious King of the Mountain race, the five kilometre Mackay Marina race, competing against competitors from across Queensland and was named the 2011 Junior Sportsperson at Mackay State High School. Liam’s goal for 2012 is to enter longer distance running races locally and out of town and to win the 2012 eight kilometre Mackay Marina run. 

Senior Sports Award: Margaret Martin

Since the mid 70s Margaret has been a familiar figure around Mackay School Hockey Association coaching teams and organising local and State competitions. Margaret has excelled in her role as coach of the Mackay District Primary School and the Mackay School Hockey Association helping her teams secure victory in Division 1 of the State titles in 2005, 2008 and 2009 and Division 2 of the State titles. For a number of years Margaret has been a major contributor to organising the Under 11 Central QLD Hockey Championships and is very much a behind the scenes contributor to the very successful Mackay School Hockey Association. 

Sarina

Community Event of the Year: Gum Valley Veterans and Natural Terrain Motorcycle Club – Australian four day Enduro event in 2011

The Gum Valley Club worked around the clock to bring the Australian four day Enduro event to the Mackay region in 2011. This event is the biggest off road motorcycle endurance race in the southern hemisphere and hasn’t been run in Queensland for nearly 20 years. The town prospered greatly from the four day event with more than 1000 spectators watching each day. The club donated $20,000 to local community groups including Koumala School, SES, Community Hall, Bushman’s Association and others. 

Community Volunteer Award: Betty Hobbs

Hector Hall, a significant meeting place for many groups in the surrounding district was founded some 30 years ago by Betty Hobbs and continues to be overseen by her. Betty’s fundraising efforts over the years has enabled Hector Hall to expand to facilitate diverse community group activities including Tai Chi, arts and crafts, play group and tennis. These activities are held on a regular basis and engage the local community from Louisa Creek and also from as far afield as Sarina and the Mackay areas. Betty is a keen advocate for the preservation and restoration of native vegetation within the area surrounding Hector Hall and Louisa Creek and co-ordinates this work with the assistance of Green Corp. 

Senior Sports Award: Victor Norton

Instead of sitting on the side and watching his children BMX ride Victor decided to lend a hand and get involved in his children’s sport. For the last nine years Victor has dedicated his time to being President of the Sarina and District BMX Club and underwent training to be a qualified coach of the Sarina and District BMX Club. Victor is a Committee Member of the Brewer’s Park Committee and was heavily involved in establishing the Skate Park in Sarina to give children somewhere safe to ride their bikes and skate boards. When Victor isn’t helping out at the Sarina BMX Club he volunteers his time helping the Netball Association run their carnivals, and the junior and senior rugby league games.

Pioneer Valley

Community Event of the Year: Pioneer Valley Classic Car Club Carburettor Ball 

The Pioneer Valley Classic Car Club held their first Carburettor Ball in 2011 with resounding success. The theme for the event was to dress in the era of your car with people turning up in hippy clothes, mullets and gangster attire. Participants were encouraged to purchase clothing from Lifeline with the proceeds going to the not-for-profit charity organisation. Over $1000 was raised from the event with the proceeds shared amongst the Variety Club of Queensland and the hospitality department of the Mirani State High School. 

Community Volunteer Award: Jan Lindbergs

Jan has been a member of the Pioneer Valley community for 15 years and has been a busy contributor of the community for every one of those years. After spending 20 years in the Australian Defence Force, Jan settled in Mirani with her husband and son and immediately invested herself into the community’s life and its needs. Jan established and helped to run the Mirani Playgroup back in the late 1990s and assisted in forming the Mirani Safety House committee. She is a long standing member of the Mirani Rotary Club, is an active member of the Valley Theatrical Players and when she’s not performing on the stage she’s helping the Mirani SES group.  Jan assisted in the recovery of cyclone Ului and in 2012 became an Adult Leader for the Emergency Management Queensland Cadets Mirani Unit. 

Cultural Award: Erin Gibson – Mirani High School

A leader is a person who empowers people to participate and leads by example and Erin Gibson has shown exceptional leadership qualities as Vice President of the Mirani High School Student Council in 2010 and President in 2011. Erin has also demonstrated outstanding leadership in the community, representing the school at the Mackay Whitsunday Schools Zone Constitutional Convention and selected as the regional delegate to attend the National Convention in Canberra. Erin won the 2011 Principal’s Leadership Award at Mirani High School and is now the worthy recipient of the 2012 Australia Day Cultural Award.

Junior Sports Award: Katrina Smith

Katrina has excelled in her chosen field of netball, not just in her personal achievements as a player but in her contributions as an umpire and a coach. Katrina has played netball for West’s Netball Club for five years and has been an active supporter and fund raiser for the club during her time there. Katrina coached the under 11 team, West’s Kittens, to a winning Grand Final in 2010 and then followed through with coaching the under 13 team to an undefeated season in 2011. Katrina played representative netball for Mackay in the Feeling Good carnival of 2011 and is currently a member of the Mackay District under 17 Netball Representative Squad.

Senior Sports Award: John O’Meara

Since the age of 14 John O’Meara has been living and breathing racing. Even after being hit by a car and told by doctors he would never ride again, within 22 months he was back on his bike racing. For the last 23 years he has been racing with the Mackay Cycling Club and was named Mackay Cycling Club’s ‘Cyclist of the Year’ for 2011, and Masters Champion for categories seven and eight.  John is a strong believer in giving back to the community and helped coach Chloe Macpherson who won the World title in 2005. John also sponsors the annual O’Meara Family Shield race in conjunction with the Rodgers Memorial Handicap.

Contact: Mackay Regional Council

Phone: 1300 MACKAY (622 529)