Improving life for our society

THE Territory is filled with some pretty incredible people. Those who go above and beyond to make the lives of others better, in all aspects of society

THE Territory is filled with some pretty incredible people. Those who go above and beyond to make the lives of others better, in all aspects of society. Today, some of those Territorians have had their hard work recognised as they were awarded Australia Day Honours.

While most people were going to the movies with friends, doing some homework and enjoying their senior years at high school, NT Police sergeant Renae McGarvie had already had her first child. From that moment, she strove to make his life the best it could be, joining the NT Police and bettering the lives of everyone around her. She’s been a member of many communities, helping people through their hardest times of grief and dancing with children at school discos.

Mickey Dewar made it her mission in life to share the lesser known histories of the NT. She created the Cyclone Tracy exhibit at the Northern Territory Museum, and wrote the stories of senior Territorians so they would never be lost.

Mihail Halikitis moved to Australia as a young man, hoping to make a better life for himself and his family. With his brother, he developed one of Darwin’s biggest construction companies, stimulating the Territory economy and building hundreds of people’s houses around the Top End.

Up for some of the Australian of the Year awards were some impressive Territorians too. Bettina Danganbarr, a policewoman in Elcho Island, has offered up her home as a safe haven to dozens of domestic violence victims. Dr Bo Remenyi became one of Australia’s first paediatric cardiologists after watching too many children die in Territory communities from preventable heart diseases.

Australia Day is the time to celebrate these individuals, and thank them for their service to the Northern Territory.