Natasha Griggs (Solomon, Country Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Yesterday morning at Lake Alexander, one of the few croc-free bodies of water in the Territory, a wonderful program called Kayak4Youth was launched.

Kayak4Youth was founded by Andy Warton to raise funds and awareness for the prevention of suicide, with a particular focus on youth. This September, the Kayak4Youth adventure will take place as a two-day overnight kayak trip on the Katherine river, a river known for its beauty but also for its crocs.

Together with Lifeline, Kayak4Youth held a paddle boarding event which challenged local community leaders and business people to race across Lake Alexander to raise awareness for this very important cause as part of the official launch of the program. Unfortunately, I was unable to attend due to my duties here in this place. However, my husband, Paul, agreed to represent me, and by all accounts he did a fantastic job—as he always does. I was delighted when I heard that Paul did me proud by winning the paddle board race.

I would like to finish by saying congratulations to Andy Warton, founder of Kayak4Youth, and to Michelle Hanton, CEO of Lifeline Top End, for taking the initiative and bringing this very important issue into the public arena. I look forward to working with both of them in raising the awareness of this fantastic initiative and getting the community involved in Kayak4Youth. (Time expired)