Matt Keogh (Burt, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In October, I attended the Amanda Young Garden Fete in Southern River, one of the main fundraising events of the year for the Amanda Young Foundation. Amanda Young was an inspiring young woman, possessing many skills and passions, and a much-loved daughter of Barry and Lorraine. Amanda was talented and hardworking in sports, academics and music. She was only two years older than me. Throughout her life, Amanda excelled in competitive sports, and she had a desire to pursue her dream of a future of environmental science. Amanda travelled internationally both to compete in sporting events and to further her studies, as well as participating in two National Science Youth Forums here in Canberra.

In October 1997, Amanda attended an intervarsity rowing regatta in Penrith, where she tragically contracted meningococcal disease and died at the tender age of 18. However, Amanda's legacy lives on through the Amanda Young Foundation, which her parents established in 1998 with the aim of reducing deaths in WA from meningococcal disease and supporting survivors of the disease. The foundation is also committed to supporting the development of young people in Western Australia as future leaders.

Presently, the W strain of meningococcal is particularly affecting many Indigenous communities in WA. The strain affects not just the very young but also the elderly. Too many lives have already been lost to the W strain this year in our community. It is very important to encourage vaccination and also to make sure that the vaccine, which has been in short supply and is expensive, is available.