Australians of the Year 2019: Thai cave heroes Richard Harris, Craig Challen
Richard ‘Harry’ Harris and Craig Challen cancelled their vacation to help save 12 children trapped in a cave. Now they've made history by become the first-ever dual recipients of the Australian of the Year award.
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Heroic cave divers Richard ‘Harry’ Harris and Craig Challen have made history to become the first-ever dual recipients of the Australian of the Year award.
The humble South Australian anaesthetist and his West Australian dive buddy were awarded the top honour for their selfless bravery in the dramatic rescue of 12 boys trapped in a flooded Thai cave in July.
Dr Harris said he would dedicate this year to encouraging Aussie kids to be more active and “find their inner explorer”.
“I do fear for kids today who, living in a risk averse society, will not learn to challenge themselves and earn the grazed knees and stubbed toes that really are necessary to build resilience and confidence,” he said.
“I think a need for adventure resides in all of us, and the answer for some is found in reading books and for others, by watching the screen, but for others, like ourselves, exploration is actually a real addiction.”
He said it was equally important to ask parents to “relax a little and let them have a bit of rope”.
“Anyone with a measure of enthusiasm can achieve the sort of things that we’ve done and, I can’t bear to see kids squander any of these opportunities, trapped indoors, eyes glued to a screen. So my message is very simple, that is time is short, get among it and take your kids with you.”
The humble heroes said they were “uneasy” with the recognition and emphasised that they had been part of a team and surrounded by nominees who had dedicated their lives to a cause.
“For two good mates to share the award would be tremendous,” Dr Harris said ahead of the ceremony in Canberra last night.
Both men had earlier received state honours and Australia’s second highest civilian bravery award, the Star of Courage, for their crucial role in the dramatic rescue of the Wild Boars soccer team last year.
Dr Harris was pivotal in the rescue, working under extreme conditions to assess each boy and provide a sedative before they made the perilous 1.7km journey to the surface.
He was key to the mission’s success and stayed in the cave until every boy and their soccer coach was safe.
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Dr Challen, who has set depth records for diving, also played a leading role, working 10 to 12 hours each day as part of the human chain that swam the sedated boys through the dark flooded cave to safety.
National Australia Day Council chair Danielle Roche paid tribute to the men, saying: “They placed the safety of others above their own and inspired hope when hope seemed lost.”
“Their selflessness, courage and willingness to help others in a time of need typifies the Australian spirit,” she said.
Canberra paediatrician Dr Suzanne Packer AM was named the Senior Australian of the Year, Darwin indigenous rapper and dancer Danzal Baker, known as Baker Boy, was named Young Australian of the Year
Prime Minister Scott Morrison thanked all nominees and recipients, saying they were “the very best of Australia, the very best of our stories, the very best of our contributions.”
CHILD ABUSE CAMPAIGNER LAUDED
Canberra paediatrician Dr Suzanne Packer AM has been named the Senior Australian of the Year for her work in child abuse prevention, activism for children’s rights and promoting child-friendly spaces in hospitals.
In a powerful speech, Dr Packer said Australian children “are not doing as well as they could” and called on families and the government to focus more on their needs.
“Plants and children need appropriate environments to grow and flourish.
“When I plant seedlings, if things go wrong, I blame myself, I don’t blame the plants for the poor performance.
“But from families to governments, when our plans for our children go wrong, so often we do blame the child, saying things like “shows no respect”, “eats too much junk food” and so on.
“We need to remember that we are the drivers for the world our children experience every day.”
She added that if Australian children were to improve beyond the “middle of the pack,” adults needed to change.
“We need to notice children, be curious about their lives, whether it’s our own children, children in the neighbourhood or the children on Nauru.”
RAPPER TAKES YOUNG AUSSIE GONG
Darwin rapper Danzal Baker, also known as Baker Boy, has been named Young Australian of the Year.
As the first indigenous artist to go mainstream rapping in the Yolngu Matha language, he was honoured for his musical success and work to inspire young people in remote indigenous communities.
“I see this as an important moment, not just for me, but for my people, respecting the strength of our culture and the value of knowledge and power in music and voices has to unite us,” Baker said.
PARENTS AWARDED FOR BULLYING AWARENESS
An emotional Kate and Tick Everett fought back tears as they were named Australia’s Local Heroes for 2019 for raising awareness of cyber bullying after the devastating death of their daughter Amy ‘Dolly’ Everett.
Dolly was just 14-years-old when she took her own life.
Vowing to follow Dolly’s example and “speak even if your voice shakes”, Ms Everett said: “Bullying has no place in anybody’s life, not in school, not in sporting fields, and most certainly not in the workplace and not online. Yet one in four children are being bullied.”
Mr Everett said he wanted his daughter’s legacy to be that Australia’s schools became the safest in the world. “Bullying is a learned behaviour but so is kindness. We can combat this and teach our children to be kind instead,” he said.
‘ECLECTIC BUNCH’
Addressing a morning tea at The Lodge, the prime minister said the nominees were an “eclectic bunch”.
“Today is very special day because today and tomorrow we remind ourselves of our shared histories as Australians and we rededicate ourselves to Australia’s future,” Mr Morrison said.
“Our Australians of the Year, our Local Heroes, our Young Australians and Senior Australians of the Year are a reflection of the very best of Australia, the very best of our stories, the very best of our contributions.”
He said he had been raised to understand that “life wasn’t about what you accumulate, its about what you contribute.”
“Everyone here is a model of that way of life and that way of thinking.”
Three-time Paralympic gold medallist Kurt Fearnley was nominated for the national award after a glittering 20-year wheelchair racing career.
“The sport gave me life. The sport changed the way I saw myself in about 10 seconds,” Fearnley said.
The NSW Australian of the Year, who was born without part of his spine, has also been an advocate for people with disability, campaigning for greater access in communities and workplaces.
Victorian Australian of the Year Mark Sullivan is the founder and managing director of not-for-profit Medicines Development for Global Health.
MDGH received a world-first approval for its new medicine, moxidectin, which treats river blindness, a debilitating disease endemic among the world’s poorest people.
Queensland’s finalist is Detective Inspector Jon Rouse, for his work with Australia’s first police operation proactively targeting online child sex predators.
Former Essendon AFL star Michael Long’s work in reconciliation, including his annual Long Walk which raises awareness of indigenous issues, earned him the nomination for the Northern Territory.
Tasmanian Bernadette Black founded the BRAVE foundation, Australia’s only national organisation supporting and representing 8300 expectant and parenting teenagers a year.
She was in the running for the national gong, along with ACT women’s advocate and journalist Virginia Haussegger for her work with a foundation striving for gender equality in public life.
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