Mark Butler (Hindmarsh, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Health and Aged Care) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Today I rise to acknowledge Elizabeth Anne Gillespie, or Lizzie to her family and friends—a great South Australian who passed away last month. Born in 1942, the 13th child of 14, Elizabeth led a storied life. She had a rare genetic disorder called spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia congenita, or SEDC, which affects the bones of the spine, arms and legs. She wasn't expected to live a long life, but she surpassed every expectation, living until 82. SEDC often results in dwarfism and can cause really serious issues with vision and hearing loss. Lizzie chose not to have surgical interventions for scoliosis, and, when she was asked if she ever regretted that choice, she shrugged her shoulders and said: 'Well, they didn't have any guarantees I wouldn't be as I am today.'

She was remembered as a really good student at St Dominic's Priory, in North Adelaide. A classmate once noted that she faced every day with composure and courage despite the difficulty and the discrimination that she would no doubt have faced as a student with disability back in the 1940s and 1950s.

In the 1960s, Elizabeth was an early leader and advocate for people with disability—a pioneering campaigner for disability rights, for acceptance and for opportunity in South Australia. She and her sister would often write letters to people in positions of power to ask for better supports, for better services and for equal access.

Lizzie was a lover of music. She was often said to be the last one standing on the dance floor, demanding that the band play one more song. In 1975, Elizabeth, I'm pleased to say, continued her lifelong political activism when she joined the crowd of South Australians who protested the sacking of the Whitlam government in Victoria Square, in the centre of Adelaide.

In her later years, she lived a simple life. It was full of love, of kindness, of close friendship and of cats. She always had a great love of animals. Sadly, Elizabeth passed away on 6 October 2024, and I want to provide my sincerest condolences to her family and to her friends. I thank Lizzie for her advocacy, for her activism and for her courage in supporting Australians with a disability, which has had an ongoing impact right until today.