A NUMBER of South East residents have made their mark on history after being named on the King’s Birthday Honours list.
Four residents from Mount Gambier/Berrin and surrounds were recognised on the Honours list for significant contributions to their communities.
MAUREEN CHRISTIE, AM
Maureen Christie received honours for her contributions to wildlife conservation.
Ms Christie has been heavily involved in conservation for around 30 years, holding roles with Friends of Shorebirds SE, BirdLife Australia and Friends of Mount Gambier Area Parks to name just a few.
When she got the letter saying she was being considered for the Honours list, Ms Christie said she was a bit overwhelmed.
“I had to pinch myself because you know a long way in advance and you’re sworn to secrecy,” she said.
“I really couldn’t quite believe it, I kept on re-reading it because it just didn’t seem to make sense.”
Ms Christie said volunteering was a very important part of her life and she hoped to see more people putting their hands up to help the environment.
“The young, and when I say young I mean school age, are very committed and very involved,” she said.
“The trouble is, when you become a full time student at university and then you get married and there’s children and a mortgage and all of those things, it becomes very difficult to fit volunteering into your life.
“I like to think when those commitments are starting to run down a bit that people will then turn back to their interest in the environment they had as children.”
She said volunteering is very rewarding and she will continue to be a passionate advocate for the environment, particularly in regards to protecting shorebirds.
DARRYL HOSKING, OAM
Darryl Hosking, better known to most as Sid, was honoured for his contributions to baseball.
Mr Hosking has spent around 60 years on the baseball diamond in Mount Gambier/Berrin, taking on roles ranging from player to league president to being a founding member of the Legends Baseball Club.
He was also inducted into the South Australian Baseball Hall of Fame in 2022.
Mr Hosking said his wife saw the email saying he made the list before he did and he initially did not believe it was real.
“I was gobsmacked,” he said.
“We looked at it on the computer and I thought is this a scam?
“We rang the number and they said it certainly isn’t a scam, it’s quite legit.”
Mr Hocking said he has received a few accolades in his life that he thought were hard to top, but making the Honours list was certainly up there.
“I got a couple of other things that I thought were the pinnacle, but this is certainly the pinnacle,” he said.
“You don’t do this sort of stuff for rewards and accolades, but when they come it’s excellent recognition.
“Whatever comes along comes along, I certainly didn’t expect anything like this.”
Accolades aside, Mr Hosking said the important thing was to remember to give back to the community whenever you were able to.
“If I can paraphrase John F Kennedy, ask not what baseball can do for you, ask what you can do for baseball,” he said.
“And that can be referenced to any sport or committee or social club or community event.”
MICHAEL BAKKER, OAM
AS someone who began with no set plan for his future during school, Michael Bakker OAM never thought his expansive career in teaching would lead to a King’s Honour.
Michael was in a “state of shock” from the announcement as the feeling continued days after he found out he would be awarded one of the highest honours a member of the public could receive.
The award recognised his vast contributions to the world of education, as his experience varied from teaching in metalwork and woodwork to his work as a drama and music teacher for Grant High School.
Although he never liked school during his years as a student, Michael expressed how he was where he was meant to be when he first walked the career path of a teacher, which he said was aided by the fact his mother was in the education department.
After school, Michael served in the automotive industry for about five years, before giving teaching a chance after hearing how his school friends’ own experiences in the field were.
Serving at Grant High School for 28 years, Michael said he never set out to do anything extraordinary and just wanted to keep doing the job he loved.
He said the whole experience gave him a better understanding of how each student needed different levels of support in order to perform at their full potential.
“I worked with some amazing people, a close friend of mine Scott Maxwell and I co-wrote school musicals which were amazing experiences,” Michael said.
“Getting kids who were struggling to do better and achieve more than they possibly could was a big highlight.
“It gave me a broader outlook on how different students learn and also I have to acknowledge Judith, my wife, because she had to put up with me never being home.
“I started to understand within the confines of a normal school day, some kids can’t achieve their absolute best without extra time or support, whether that be from countless theatre rehearsals or helping kids with essays after hours.”
He said without the support of his family and his wife Judith, he would have found it much more difficult to carry on with the job he knew was right for him.
“You see something which needs addressing, then you need to go in there and do it so whether it be marking essays at 3am or running extra study sessions for Year 12 kids then that’s what you need to do,” he said.
She (Judith) had to tolerate a lot, there were times I wasn’t home and was fixing things in the drama room, maintaining equipment or lecturing kids, which included me being absent from kids’ birthdays as well.
“If you’re not in there for the long haul and there to do everything you can to help young people then it’s probably not the job for some people.”
WILLIAM “BILL” BARROWS, OAM
MOUNT Gambier/Berrin resident William “Bill” Barrows has been involved in the motor sports for decades after growing up on a farm and forming a love for vehicles.
Mr Barrows said he had always “messed around” with vehicles and had previously visited the Borderline Speedway with his father when he was younger.
“Someone offered me a car I could drive initially and it just grew from there,” Mr Barrows said.
“It was the enjoyment of racing that enticed my and the competing.”
Getting involved with the speedway committee in the late 1960’s he said he got more and more involved ever since.
“My involvement in the speedway all started because I started racing at the Borderline Speedway and then I was president of our local club and when we had state clubs that would meet annually, I got involved and was president of the state body,” he said.
“I was also involved with the state body and when I started racing sprint cars, as I raced hot rods first, I got involved nationally going to National Sprint Car Control Council meetings.
“I became president of the National Sprint Car Control Council in the mid-80s and I was also president of the Sprint Car Control of Australia.”
Mr Barrows said because of his involvement with the local speedway club, he also represented the Borderline Speedway at promoters association meetings across the country.
“Through all that involvement we now have a group called Speedway Australia which supervises speedway in Australia which did not exist 25 years ago,” he said.
Mr Barrows also received a bravery medal in 1991 after helping a fellow racer out of a burning car.
“There was an accident between two cars and the fuel line ruptured and the car ended up catching fire,” he said.
“I helped him out of the car and he survived even though they did not think he would.”
Speaking on receiving his most recent award, Mr Barrows said if he “got serious” about it, he realised he has had a large involvement in the Mount Gambier/Berrin speedway industry.
“That has also led to other things and other awards because of my racing commitment,” he said.
“I raced until it was no longer fun but remain involved in the speedway through working bees.”
Mr Barrows was also inducted into the Australia Speedway Hall of Fame in 2019 and received an official Volunteer of the Year, Australian Speedway Award the year before.
He was also inducted into the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame in 1995 among other awards.
