2023 Australia Day Awards
About
- 2023 Award categories included: Citizen of the Year, Senior Citizen of the Year, Young Citizen of the Year, and Community Event of the Year.
- The Australia Day Awards celebrate and recognise those who have shown a willingness to lend a helping hand, concern for the environment or participated in sport, arts or cultural endeavours. They share the aspirations of all Australians in respect of tolerance, democracy, equity and equality of opportunity.
- For more information about the awards and previous years' winners and nominees, visit our Australia Day Awards webpage.
2023 Citizen of the Year: Shelley Beardshaw
From the time Shelly Beardshaw arrived in Melbourne with her young family in 1990, she has generously given her time to local schools and organisations.
Friends of Shelley say that while she has a passion for children, she genuinely cares for her whole community at large.
Shelley has improved the wellbeing of numerous children, new mothers, teachers, and seniors by volunteering wherever she sees the need. She has stepped up into roles on various committees, including as secretary of the Emerald Village Association in 2021.
Shelly has enduring energy, an uplifting presence, and a welcoming attitude toward everyone she meets, while also supporting her own family.
2023 Senior Citizen of the Year: Audrey Dodson
Audrey Dodson is a founding member of the Berwick Pakenham Historical Society and is known among her peers to be the ‘glue’ of the society. She became secretary in 1988 and is also the group’s archivist.
Audrey has been integral in ensuring local heritage is preserved by opening the society’s doors to local schools, as well as hosting walking tours along Pakenham Main Street to educate students about local history.
She ensures that members of the society receive the newsletters of other societies, including the Royal Historical Society of Victoria and other local groups.
Fellow society members say that Audrey is a dependable attendee at meetings and is generous with her time. She attends cleaning days, assists with special occasions such as the launch of the Pakenham: Then and Now book, keeps up with the donations of archival material, and provides research advice to the public.
Audrey is a well-known member of her community not only through her role as a society member, but as a teacher in both Pakenham and Beaconsfield, and in her 1957 position as secretary of the Young Farmers Club.
2023 Young Citizen of the Year: Ace Simpson-Braden
Ace Simpson-Braden is a cadet at the 403 Squadron Beaconsfield.
He dedicated much of his spare time in 2022 to training with the Australian Air Force Cadets program and learning to train other cadets at his squadron.
Each Monday night, Ace prepares and delivers lessons in subjects such as Cadet Drill Skills for new cadets. These lessons help new cadets to gain confidence and self-discipline, ensure they learn to build personal standards and assist in creating respect and confidence.
During the June school holidays, Ace gave up time with his friends and family to spend 2 weeks training on an air force base at Point Cook to become a pilot, allowing him to progress to the goal of solo flight after 20 hours in flight.
He is completing his Duke of Edinburgh Silver Award and has supported mental health initiatives like RUOK Day and the Push Up Challenge.
Ace is now preparing for his final promotion course, where he will become a Cadet Under Officer.
2023 Community Event of the Year: Cardinia Men's Shed Senior-tivity Day
The Cardinia Men’s Shed supports older men in the community to remain active and connected through a range of activities. The group’s goal is to increase the social connections and networks of the aging community and to have a positive effect on their members’ health and wellbeing.
After long periods of lockdown and isolation during the COVID pandemic, the Men's Shed identified a gap in free activities for older residents and older peoples’ hesitancy to attend community gatherings.
To address this, the Cardinia Men's Shed held a ‘Senior-tivity Day’ on 1 October 2022 to showcase local community groups to residents. Groups attending included the Pakenham Purls, Probus, Pakenham Arthritis Support Group, the Golden Girls, and the Berwick-Pakenham Historical Society. There was also local art, gardening, and walking groups.
The event attracted hundreds of local seniors who were able to meet with the community groups and learn about their activities.
Senior-tivity Day resulted in increased membership for local community groups and has helped to encourage senior citizens to re-engage in local activities as they continue their journey through COVID recovery.