30 October 2014

Will Hodgman, Premier

Tasmanian Australian of the Year Awards

EMBARGOED UNTIL 7:30 pm, OCTOBER 30

Sincere congratulations to Rodney Croome AM on being named the Tasmanian Australian of the Year.

This award acknowledges the personal sacrifices Mr Croome has made campaigning for equal rights over the past 26-years.

Mr Croome's fight against discrimination, and ultimate success, has changed Tasmania for the better.

Each year our nation celebrates individuals who inspire us through their achievements and challenge us to make our own contribution to creating a better Australia.

There is no doubt the Tasmanian Award recipients have made a tremendous contribution to shaping our state and I congratulate them all:

• Tasmanian Senior Australian of the Year, historian Professor Henry Reynolds; who has enriched the nation's understanding of our past and pointed the way to a better future as a leading authority on Australia's Indigenous people.
• Tasmanian Young Australian of the Year, business mentor Adam Mostogl; who has inspired young people to realise their potential and seize opportunities, particularly on the state's West Coast.
• Tasmania's Local Hero, Volunteer radio operator Mary Kay, who has operated the Smithton Coast Guard radio for 18 years from her home, receiving around 5,000 calls a year for support and advice from boaters and fishermen in Bass Strait.

While there can only be four award recipients, every finalist deserves our gratitude and respect.

Our award winners will now be considered for the 2015 Australian of the Year Awards, which will be announced by the Prime Minister in a ceremony in Canberra on the eve of Australia Day.

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