25 Jan, 2016
Congratulations to Adelaide’s 2016 Citizen of the Year Award Winners
City of Adelaide Lord Mayor Martin Haese this afternoon presented the City of Adelaide 2016 Australia Day Awards at the Adelaide Town Hall.
The Awards are presented to local citizens or groups each year in three categories based on having made a significant contribution in 2015 or given outstanding service to the local community.
The 2016 Citizen of the Year Award went to Anne Burgess for her work as an advocate for the disadvantaged in the community, women, people with disabilities and mental illness, as well as refugees.
Anne has previously held a number of key positions including the Deputy Equal Opportunity Commissioner for South Australia, the Deputy Equal Opportunity Commissioner, the Director of the Office for Women and the Director of Mental Health Services.
“Anne is committed to involving the community and working with key people to plan and achieve positive change. She is respected by people of all ages for her leadership qualities and as a social worker, has been an outstanding advocate for a ‘fair go’ for all members of the community,” said Martin.
“I congratulate Anne on her very well deserved award and thank her for all the wonderful work she does for the disadvantaged people in our community.”
Beau Brug was the recipient of the Young Citizen of the Year Award. Beau is a law student at the University of Adelaide and has been a volunteer for the city and the local community for many years.
Beau’s recent achievements include finding and mobilising young people to create the Adelaide University Lions Club (the first and only university Lions Club), working within the Adelaide Student Toastmasters Club to help young students become more confident public speakers, and working with VGen and World Vision to lobby and advocate for SA politicians to become Fair Trade and sustainable with procurement for their electorate offices.
“Beau is a young man who devotes his life to empowering other young people to have a voice and overcome their obstacles. Beau has been a real inspiration to many people around him,” said Martin.
“At only twenty years of age, Beau is also an ambassador for several organisations and charities as an active advocate for the causes he is most passionate about, including mental health, ending violence against women and alleviating poverty.
“Beau’s dedication to seeing young people inspired and engaged makes him a very well-deserving recipient of this award and I congratulate him on it.”
The Community Event of the Year Award went to The Big Lunch, held by The Big Issue each year to raise funds to keep their office open and to run the programs that support the homeless, such as the Street Soccer Program.
“The Big Issue has made a significant difference to the lives of the homeless in South Australia, empowering people to support themselves and become independent again,” Martin said.
“The magazine has very limited resources and without this event, many programs that re-empower and re-engage the homeless would not take place. A very big congratulations to all the team behind The Big Lunch and the Big Issue.”
The Awards were presented as part of City of Adelaide’s Australia Day Citizenship Ceremony, where 36 people aged between 10 and 72 from 16 different countries around the world were presented with their Australian Citizenship.
“I’d like to congratulate all of our new Australian citizens who have pledged their commitment to our nation and wholeheartedly welcome them as part of our Australian community,” Martin said.
L-R: Community Event of the Year: The Big Lunch represented by Matthew Stedman and Jeremy Urquhart, Lord Mayor Martin Haese, Citizen of the Year: Anne Burgess, Young Citizen of the Year: Beau Brug