Territorians receive Australia Day honours in recognition of service
A number of Territorians are among more than 1000 people to receive prestigious awards and recognition in the Australia Day Award. Read some of their stories.
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A number of Territorians are among more than 1000 Australians set to receive prestigious awards and recognition.
Find out what drives some of them, and what the recognition means to them.
Timothy Shaun Duggan OAM
Timothy Duggan launched the Hoops 4 Health in 2002 when he decided to combine his history as the first NT National Basketball League player with his community spirit.
“Even though I played basketball at the top level in this country, I consider my achievements in founding and sustaining Hoops 4 Health my most notable contribution,” he said.
Mr Duggan said the program operated in youth detention centres such as Don Dale to build kids’ resilience.
In the future, he hopes to have a dedicated space for the program to support the Territory’s younger generation.
Thanks to his hard work, Mr Duggan has been awarded an Order of Australia Medal for his service to youth and to sport.
Maureen Langdon OAM
Maureen Langdon was the first full-time female ambulance officer in Australia, working for the Northern Territory St John Ambulance service.
She had a collection of teddy bears and said her patients knew “they were allowed to pick a teddy, sit in the waiting room, and give (the) teddy a cuddle”.
Ms Langdon worked throughout the Territory for 48 years. She wanted to be a nurse since she was 11.
“What kept me going was the fact that there’s always somebody out there who needs a helping hand, even if it’s only to hold their hand,” she said.
Ms Langdon has been recognised for her compassionate work with an Order of Australia Medal for her service to nursing.
Henry Gray OAM
Henry Gray’s passion for teaching led him on a journey across the NT, including to Groote Eylandt, Nhulunbuy, and Darwin.
He had worked in WA but was drawn to the Territory due to his interest in Indigenous education.
Mr Gray said it was up to school principals to make sure children attend school and urged today’s leaders to take a proactive approach to supporting students.
“If I’ve been successful as an educator, it’s because I’ve had strong students, strong staff, strong parents, and strong community support (and) always tried very hard to take those four groups with me,” he said.
Mr Gray has been recognised for his hard work and been awarded the Order of Australia Medal for his service to education.
Susan Jane McCallum OAM
Susan McCallum has been working in the service community since the late 1990s and currently works as a compensation advocate veterans and their families.
She had previously been posted in Darwin as a radio operator in the Navy and said multiple generations of her family had enlisted in Defence roles.
Ms McCallum said she now helped veteran families with their compensation claims from the Department of Veterans’ Affairs.
She said she was overwhelmed to receive the Order of Australia Medal for her service to veterans.
“I get calls from wives to say, ‘thank you very much for helping’ and I go, ‘I don’t feel like I’ve done much’, but obviously to them, I have done something significant,” Ms McCallum said.
Beverley Jean McCormack OAM
Beverley McCormack began her remote nursing career in 2004 with short contracts across Australia, but has been permanently based in Central Australia since 2006.
She has been recognised for her dedication with an Order of Australia medal for her service to remote area nursing.
Ms McCormack said it was wonderful to be acknowledged and hoped it inspired others “to give remote nursing a try”.
“The highlight of my career, was coming to the understanding that I am exactly where I should be with the right career pathway that I had chosen,” she said.
“I feel incredibly lucky to do what I love.”
Sadhana Mahajani AM
Dr Sadhana Mahajani helped establish Darwin’s first community health centre in 1974 and continued to provide medical services out of a demountable after the centre was destroyed by Cyclone Tracy.
She later opened another six health centres and began visiting remote areas of the Territory to offer medical services.
Dr Mahajani practised in the Territory for 40 years, working locum jobs before finding a passion for geriatric care.
“Locum jobs were easy to get, rather than a permanent job, and they were in aged care, and I really developed an interest in aged care,” she said.
Dr Mahajani was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia for her significant service to aged care and to community health.
Peter Malley APM
Peter Malley has worked for the NT Police for more than 20 years across Alice Springs and Darwin.
“I love my job and keeping the NT safe,” he said.
“Looking after the community is everything we do and its job satisfaction is fantastic, so I would never have ever wanted to have done anything else.”
Superintendent Malley was promoted to Superintendent in 2021 and currently manages Palmerston and Road Policing.
He has been recognised for his dedicated service with an Austrlian Police Medal.
Bess Nungarrayi Price AM
Former Country Liberal Party minister Bess Price has been appointed Member of the Order of Australia for her significant service to the parliament of the Northern Territory and to the Indigenous community.
She said her role in parliament was a learning curve, but she enjoyed her term.
“I was just glad to have been in a position where I could make a difference for my people,” Ms Price said.
She now works as the assistant principal at Yipirinya School, and said she works with a wonderful team of people “who want to make a difference” for young students.
Other NT recipients include:
Mark David Leedham, AM: For significant service to dental medicine, and to professional organisations
Yanyi Bandicha, OAM: Forservice to the Indigenous communities of the Northern Territory and South Australia.
Eileen Kamara Bonney, OAM: For service to the Indigenous community of Ampilatwatja
Keryl Margaret Moir, OAM, for service to local government, and to the community of Darwin.
Liesl Alexandra Rockchild, OAM: For service to Indigenous art through administrative roles
Keturah Zimran, OAM, for service to the visual arts.
Nathan Ferguson, AFSM
Robert Burges, AFSM
Shaun Furniss, APM
Ian Smith, ESM
Gabrielle Brown, PSM
Catherine Weber, PSM
Stuart Allison, ASM
Judith Barker, ASM
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Originally published as Territorians receive Australia Day honours in recognition of service
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