Jack Gill

IN past editions of The Bunyip, you may have seen that some Gawler youth were being recognised for their involvement in the community, their careers’ success, and their personal success at the South Australian Young Achiever Awards.

Gawler locals Rebecca Marrone, Karmin Poulish, Gawler Youth Advisory Committee’s chair Renee Chamberlain and I were four select few finalists in various categories.

On May 21, all finalists and their families attended the gala dinner and awards event at the Hilton Adelaide, as a way of celebrating everyone’s achievements, their continued efforts and hard work in making South Australia a great place to live, learn and work.

Renee and I were finalists in the Santos Regional Service Award category to recognise our Gawler and broader community involvement.

I was extremely grateful to have been selected as the category winner by a panel of judges.

I wish to use this opportunity to write about the organisations that I am involved in that inspire me to make Gawler a great place to grow up in.

The Santos Regional Service Award recognises regional and rural young achievers and community contributors, acknowledging those who are helping to reshape and inspire their local communities.

I have been fortunate enough to be involved in several organisations that do such work.

The Gawler Youth Advisory Committee is one such organisation. As youth cannot vote in elections, this provides a pathway for youth to provide input and become involved in the processes that shape the town.

I have been involved in the committee for five years and have recently been elected as deputy chair. In that time, I have been involved in budgetary processes, the development of the Climate Emergency Action Plan and assisting in the running of Youth Space events.

The Gawler Environment Centre (GEC) is another organisation with passionate members dedicated to making Gawler great.

They aim to collaborate with the community to create thriving environments and sustainable lives through events, workshops and projects that engage, inspire and promote sustainability and protect our amazing environment.

My passion for the environment started in school. When I was approaching Year 12, I realised that I needed to find a new group of like-minded people.

The GEC provided that in spades, and I quickly dived in and became the website support volunteer as a starting point. Now, more than five years later, I am honoured to be the chair
of the GEC committee, while still helping with the website.

Like the GEC, I joined the Gawler Town Band before finishing Year 12 to continue my passion for playing my clarinet. The Gawler Town Band has been performing since 1860 and caters to everyone, regardless of skill level, whether you are joining after finishing school or picking up the trumpet for the first time after 20 years, and performs a wide variety of genres.

Two years ago, I wanted to become more involved in the band, and since then, I have been the treasurer and a committee member, helping the band continue to grow and keep playing great music.

There are plenty of volunteer groups that anyone can join. I encourage everyone reading this to take the first step and reach out and see how you can become involved in what you are passionate about.

It is a great feeling being involved and making a difference, and you meet amazing, like-minded people.