The Coachbuilder’s Column: Volume 15: Issue 2:  25th January 2025: the Australian of the Year Awards.

The Australian of the Year Awards were announced in a traditional 25^th January ceremony [on the eve of Australia Day] in our national Capital, Canberra this evening. As usual, there were four categories of Awards, and the respective nominations for each of those were:

Australian of the Year:

• Northern Territory: Grant Ngulmiya Nundhirribala:  internationally recognised musician and cultural leader, 
• South Australia: Professor Leigh Bromfield: Director and Chair of the Australian Centre for Child Protection;
• ACT: Megan Gilmour: after her son survived a traumatic illness, the ACT’s nominee vowed to support the 1.2 million children at risk of missing school due to chronic conditions., and co-founded MIssingSchool;
• Tasmania: Sam Elson: led the way in commercialising a new way to reduce methane emissions, a key climate change contributor;
• Western Australia:  Dianne and Ian Haggerty: Natural Intelligence Farming founders Dianne and Ian Haggerty have pioneered modern farming practises;
• NSW: Kath Koschel: A former professional cricketer and ironman competitor, Kath Koschel has faced unimaginable hurdles. Ms Koschel was told in her 20s that she would never walk again and in 2015 founded the Kindness Factory, which teaches the “power of kindness” to kids.
• Queensland:  Geoffrey Smith: is addressing a skills shortage in the technology industry by tapping into the potential of neurodivergent people, and is co-founder  Australian Spatial Analytics, where 80% of employees are neurodivergent;
• Victoria:  Neale Daniher: is a co-founder of FightMND, a charity that has raised $115m into research to find a cure for motor neurone disease.

Senior Australian of the Year

• ACT: Peter and Marilyn Ralston: have made it possible for people with vision impairment or other disabilities in the ACT to walk or run at mainstream events and enjoy the benefits of an active lifestyle.
• NSW: Dr Karl Kruszelnicki, Australia’s lovably eccentric science enthusiast and educator;
• Northern Territory:  Michael Foley: dedicated most of his life to giving back to his community: for more than 40 years community volunteer and founder of Seniors Of Excellence NT Michael Foley OAM has been contributing to the recognition of senior citizens in our communities and their mental wellbeing.
• Queensland: Dr Bronwyn Herbert: Social worker and scholar, she completed a Bachelor of Social Work at the age of 40, her master’s at age 61, and was awarded her PhD last year at the age of 90.
• South Australia: Charles Jackson: Indigenous advocate and knowledge holder Charles Jackson OAM’s passion has been working with Indigenous Australians for more than 50 years.
• Tasmania: Associate Professor Penelope Blomfield, women’s cancer specialist: as a Gynaecological oncologist her life’s work has been dedicated to improving the quality and longevity of life for her patients and others affected by gynaecological cancers;
• Victoria: Dr. Peter Brukner: Sports medicine leader and health campaigner Dr Peter Brukner OAM profoundly inspired a generation of sports medicine practitioners as the co-author of the widely used textbook, Clinical Sports Medicine.
• Western Australia: Brother Thomas Oliver Pickett: Brother Thomas Oliver (Olly) Pickett AM co-founded Wheelchairs For Kids in 1996 to provide adjustable wheelchairs and occupational therapy expertise for children in developing countries, free of charge. Since then, more than 60,000 custom-built wheelchairs have been given to children in over 80 countries.

Young Australian of the Year

• Northern Territory:  Nilesh (Nil) Dilushan: community service leader, she inspires and unites young people from diverse backgrounds to serve their community: as co-founder of two not-for-profit organisations, the 29-year-old fosters youth-driven initiatives for social change;
• ACT: Daniel Bartholomaeus:  is a 21-year-old artist with an innate ability to inspire and motivate others, especially within the neurodivergent community;
• NSW: Maddison O’Grsdey-Lee:  mental health advocate and researcher, she aims to improve the measurement of mental ill-health for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people through her PhD;
• Queensland: Dr Katrina Wruck: her scientific research is giving back to remote communities: based on her research, Katrina has set up a profit for-purpose business, Nguki Kula Green Labs, which is poised to transform the consumer goods sector by harnessing the power of green chemistry, while inspiring others to step into STEM;
• South Australia: Amber Brock-Fabel: is ensuring youth voices are heard:  Amber founded the South Australian Youth Forum in 2021 at just 17 years old: it empowers those aged 14 to 18 to discuss critical issues such as climate change, period poverty, gender equality and youth loneliness: the insights gathered – including surveys and models of engagement – are then presented to lawmakers and relevant organisations.
• Tasmania: Ariane Titmus: swimming legend: with her quiet strength and determination, the 24-year-old has become a role model for young swimmers but she has also enjoyed inspiring young people beyond her sport;
• Victoria: Aishwarya Kansakar, who taught herself computing amid the Nepalese civil war: she is a globally renowned AI and automation entrepreneur, not-for-profit executive, STEM education innovator and an automation engineer who speaks six languages.
• Western Australia:  Jack Anderson:  at the age of 24, the extent of Elucidate Educationco-founder Jack Anderson’s achievements in the education space and beyond are impressive; he is a keynote speaker, documentary maker, author and a Harvard University Teaching Fellow and scholarship recipient, through which he is pursuing a Master of Education:   Jack founded ThrivEd when he was only 18. The student-run charity produced educational materials and donated them to disadvantaged schools; ThrivEd later merged with another charity to become Elucidate Education, encompassing some 70 volunteers and expanding its reach to tens of thousands of students in Australia and globally

Local Hero of 2025

• ACT: Vanessa Brettell & Hannah Costello: are harnessing the power of hospitality  to lift and empower those most vulnerable in their community, through their business Café Stepping Stone;
• NSW: Martha Jabour: helped establish the Homicide Victims Support Group in 1993 to care for families and friends of homicide victims in NSW; but especially native wildlife
• Northern Territory: Mignon McHendrie: for over 30 years, she has brought compassion and education to her community, rescuing and caring  for the NT’s unique wildlife;
• Queensland:  Claire Smith; Wildlife Rescue Sunshine Coast founder, is a fierce protector of all living things;
• South Australia: Sobia & Irfan Hashmi: for more than 20 years, this pair of pharmacists and migrant community leaders have transformed healthcare in remote and rural communities in SA;
• Tasmania: Keren Franks: has first hand experience of the power of inclusion for people living with disability and those around them;
• Victoria: Jasmine Hirst: over the past 15 years, she has given hundreds of girls and women the opportunity to play soccer, and giving females  access to scarce local facilities, grounds and equipment; 
• Western Australia: Dr. Jacinta Vu: uses her considerable specialist skill in dentistry and oral health to generously give back to others, and played a large role in the operations of Healing Smiles, an organisation to assist women escaping domestic violence with their oral and dental health.

During the Ceremony in Canberra tonight at the National Arboretum, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese  announced the 2025 Australian of the Year, Senior Australian of the Year, Young Australian of the Year and Local Hero,  and the following four Winners were presented with their Award by Mr Albanese.

All of the nominees in each category listed above were fully deserving of being similarly recognised as the winners listed below.

Australian of the Year for 2025

Neale Daniher [Victoria]: is a co-founder of FightMND, a charity that has raised $115m into research to find a cure for motor neurone disease. Since his diagnosis in 2013, Neale and his family  have been battling the effects of the disease, but he remains a tireless campaigner for a cure and is always raising awareness of MND. With amazing courage and relentless, he’s dedicated his life to helping prevent the suffering of those who’ll be diagnosed in the future.

The average time between diagnosis and death in MND is three years, with only 10 per cent of those diagnosed surviving beyond eight years, according to the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners.
“When Neale was diagnosed, he was told to just tick off his bucket list. But the type of person that he is, he decided that he wanted to do something with the time he had left,” his wife Jan said after her husband was awarded the 2025 Victorian Australian of the Year.

Senior Australian for 2025

Brother Thomas Oliver Pickett: Brother Thomas Oliver (Olly) Pickett AM co-founded Wheelchairs For Kids in 1996 to provide adjustable wheelchairs and occupational therapy expertise for children in developing countries, free of charge. Since then, more than 60,000 custom-built wheelchairs have been given to children in over 80 countries.

With over 250 retiree workshop volunteers, Wheelchairs For Kids is one of Western Australia’s largest (and with an average age of 74, one of Australia’s oldest) volunteer-led charities. A further 550 people from aged care and community groups sew covers for wheelchair soft supports, and crochet rugs and soft toys. 

Thomas also spearheaded the development of an innovative, low-cost wheelchair design to World Health Organization standards that grows as the children do – a world first.  Wheelchairs For Kids is just one way that Thomas has improved the lives of others. For 26 continuous years, his life-changing community service has ignited a ripple effect of kindness and generosity.   

Young Australian for 2025

Dr Katrina Wruck [Qld]: her scientific research is giving back to remote communities: based on her research, Katrina has set up a profit for-purpose business, Nguki Kula Green Labs, which is poised to transform the consumer goods sector by harnessing the power of green chemistry, while inspiring others to step into STEM;

Her career in chemistry has focused on giving back to remote communities by transforming mining by-products into usable non-toxic materials like laundry detergent. Wruck is a proud Mabuigilaig and Goemulgal woman, who has advocated for First Nations knowledge and participated in community engagement programs. 

Local Hero for 2025

Vanessa Brettell & Hannah Costello [from the ACT[: are harnessing the power of hospitality  to lift and empower those most vulnerable in their community, through their business Café Stepping Stone; this business operates as a social enterprise, employing women mostly from migrant and refugee backgrounds and others who have experienced significant barriers to employment. The sustainable vegetarian café has two locations which offer culturally and linguistically diverse women employment pathways, on-the-job training and qualifications through partnerships with registered training organisations.