2009 Breakfast of Champions
Community Safety Month Launch, 1 October 2009
On International Safe Communities Day, 1 October, ICCWA launched Community Safety Month with a Breakfast of Champions at Burswood Entertainment Complex.
The event celebrated stories of communities and individuals championing safety and was an opportunity to acknowledge some of the many fantastic advocates across many safety sectors in Western Australia. Community Safety Champions are those taking initiative and action to make our local community safer. Biographies and pictures of the honoured Champions were displayed on a Wall of Champions at the event and the Champions also received complimentary tickets to the breakfast where they were presented with certificates of recognition for their leadership and achievements in safety promotion.
The Breakfast included close to 100 guests ranging from Members of Parliament; Graeme Drew, the 2009 Patron for Community Safety Month; Community Safety Champions; representatives of the CSM reference group; and professionals from health and safety agencies across both government and non-government sectors.
Graeme Drew, Community Safety Month Patron and winner of the ‘Australia’s Local Hero 2009’ Award at the Australia Day Awards this year was the key note speaker for the event. He addressed guests on the history of the ‘Nathan Drew Memorial Trust for Coastal Safety’ which was founded following the drowning of his nephew in 2003 and urged everyone to get actively involved in safety and to take-up the opportunity to join him and participate in CSM events throughout the month.
The breakfast also featured the creative hip-hop work of three Safety Bay High School boys who, through an opportunity with Millennium Kids Inc. were able to record a safety rap. Safety promotion messages promoted in the ‘Stay Off the Tracks’ rap warned of the dangers of graffiti and playing on and near train tracks and urges people to stay off train tracks. Kate Laurendi from Millennium Kids Inc. was able to attend the event on their behalf and share their story and rap with us.
ICCWA wish to thank Satterley Property Group for signing as a Supporting Partner for the event and the following ten Members of Parliament who sponsored Champions to attend the event:
- Ms J.M. Freeman, MLA
- Mr I.M Britza, MLA
- Mr M.W. Sutherland, MLA
- Hon L. MacLaren, MLC
- Hon H. Morton, MLC
- Hon L. Behjat, MLC
- Hon J. Ferguson, MLC
- Hon G. Watson, MLC
- Hon P Gardiner, MLC
- Hon J.C. Kobelke, MLA.
Representative agencies from the CSM reference group and the Health Networks Branch, Department of Health, WA, also hosted displays in the registration foyer. The range of topics included in these displays further emphasises the wide-ranging and all-encompassing meaning of ‘community safety’ and CSM.
Wall of Champions
The Wall of Champions, created to celebrate Champions of Community Safety at the CSM Launch event features 23 ‘everyday’ community members. Safety Champions stretch across safety topics ranging from mental wellness to water safety, national defense, crime prevention, road safety, falls prevention and working with different at risk population groups.