Damian Hale (Solomon, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise today to put on the record my congratulations to all the finalists and winners in the Northern Territory 2009 Telstra Business Women’s Awards. Last Friday I had the pleasure of attending the awards function, and what a spectacular event it was. Thank you to the all the sponsors and congratulations to the organisers. It was indeed a privilege to be in the same room with so many of the brightest and most talented businesspeople from all parts of the Northern Territory. To be selected as a finalist for such an auspicious award is a fantastic effort. To be declared a winner is a testament to an amazing personal achievement that requires passion, resilience, courage and determination. I congratulate Vicky Taylor, who was named the 2009 Telstra Northern Territory Business Woman of the Year. Vicky is the general manager of the Alice Springs Hospital and, with her highly trained staff, she provides medical services to a population of 55,000 across more than four million square kilometres of Central Australia. I know the member for Lingiari is very excited by Vicky’s win, and he appreciates greatly her contribution to health in Alice Springs and the surrounding areas.

I also congratulate the other category winners. Yvonne Bradley is from Bradley Seafood in Borroloola, where Yvonne and her husband have built a successful seafood business. In fact, they have doubled the size of the family fishing operation, despite extreme hardship and isolation. Look out for their seafood in the southern restaurants. Congratulations also to Wendy Oldham from the NT Gas/APA Group. She took out the Hudson Private and Corporate Sector Award. Wendy is the general manager of NT Gas and leads a team that delivers gas to some of the most remote areas in the NT. Wendy’s team of 50 ensures that critical natural gas is delivered through more than 2,000 kilometres of pipeline across the Territory. This year’s marie claire Young Business Women’s Award went to Charmaine Barrett from the NT Industry Capability Network, or the NTICN. Charmaine is the marketing and project coordinator of the NTICN, responsible for the showcasing the strength, the experience and the ability of NT businesses and matching them to relevant projects and business opportunities around the country. Once again, congratulations to all involved. It is with a high degree of bias that I look forward to seeing the Territory finalists win the national titles in their respective categories at the national awards dinner in Melbourne next month.

It would remiss of me not to mention that today is Pink Ribbon Day. Tragically, breast cancer takes the lives of more than 2,500 Australian women each year, and 12,000 women will be diagnosed with the disease in the next 12 months. Australia has a strong track record in managing breast cancer. Internationally, we were rated as having one of the best breast cancer care systems in the word. However, cancer can strike any of us, and Pink Ribbon Day is a time to remember breast cancer awareness. Today we remember also those who have lost their fight with breast cancer and those who continue to fight this terrible disease. We also celebrate those women who have won their fight against this disease.

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