NSW/ACT Indigenous Young Achiever, Danielle Hobday, receives her award from Santos General Manager of Energy NSW, Peter Mitchley
This year Santos was again the proud sponsor of the Indigenous Achievement Award at the NSW/ACT Young Achievers Awards. The winners were announced at a gala dinner on Friday night with Wiradjuri woman Danielle Hobday of Mangrove Mountain, taking out the award in the Indigenous Category.
Danielle, 22, is a juvenile justice youth officer whose passion is working with indigenous youth and women within the justice system. Danielle is completing a double degree in law & criminology, undertaking an Australian Federal Police Cadetship and also volunteers with community youth programs.
Acting Premier, Troy Grant, pictured with the category finalists and overall NSW/ACT Young Achiever winner, Grace Liley
The overall NSW/ACT Young Achiever, chosen from the category winners, was Grace Liley of Blakehurst who also won the Environment and Sustainability Award.
The awards ceremony featured many amazing stories from young people who, despite their youth, are dedicated to making a really positive difference in the community and we’d like to congratulate all those nominated in recognition of their fantastic achievements.
Outgoing NSW/ACT Young Achiever and 2015 Santos Indigenous Young Achiever, Rhett Burraston, told the audience how the recognition had increased his credibility and provided him with a greater platform to advocate on behalf of at-risk young people. He also spoke about how the award allowed him to visit schools across NSW, including Narrabri, where he was a guest speaker at Narrabri High School in October and shared his story.