Australia Day ambassador to add inspiration and pride

Australia Day Ambassador Dr Sally Goold OAM will be an inspirational keynote speaker at Sunshine Coast Council’s citizenship ceremony at Aussie World Theme Park from 9.30am on Sunday 26 January.

Mayor Mark Jamieson said council continues to support the Australia Day Ambassador program, hosting a variety of high achieving Australians to help add inspiration and pride to their Australia Day events and celebrations.

“It is a great honour to welcome Australia Day Ambassador Dr Goold OAM to our citizenship ceremony which will see more than 170 Coast residents become Australian citizens,” he said.

“Dr Goold has been an inspirational mentor for Australian nurses, especially those from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.

“The citizenship recipients and their families will definitely remember Australia Day as an important milestone in their lives.”

Dr Goold OAM said she was privileged to be invited to be an Australia Day Ambassador especially so, as a Senior Australian of the Year award winner.

“I am deeply honoured to have been given the opportunity as an Indigenous woman and member of the oldest living culture, to be able to participate in such an occasion as the citizenship ceremony,” she said.

“We are a culturally diverse nation and do need to respect our diversity and learn the history of Australia.”

Following last year’s successful live web stream, family members and friends are able to share this special day from anywhere in the world via Sunshine Coast Council’s website.

Australian Citizenship Ceremonies on the Sunshine Coast are held every month at various locations across the region. Visit council’s website for further information on Australian Citizenship Ceremonies and to access the link to the live streaming.

Background on Dr Goold OAM

Dr Goold OAM is a registered nurse who has been influential in improving opportunities and education for young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander nurses. She was instrumental in forming the Congress of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Nurses and was the Executive Director, until her retirement in July 2012.

She assisted in forming the Aboriginal Medical Service in Redfern, along with Fred Hollows, and worked there from its inception - she was the first Aboriginal Registered Nurse to do so.

Dr Goold OAM boasts a long list of awards and achievements including an Order of Australia Medal for service to Nursing Education and Aboriginal Health in 1986, the Royal College of Nursing (Queensland Chapter) Distinguished Nursing Award in 2000, a Doctor of Nursing from RMIT University in 2002 and the Senior Australian of the Year in 2006.

Along with her extensive experience as a nurse, Dr Goold OAM has held a number of positions on advisory boards and councils, has lectured in both undergraduate and post-graduate programs at the School of Nursing at Queensland University of Technology and is an Adjunct Professor at both James Cook University and Griffith University.