City of Darwin is pleased to announce the winners of the annual Lord Mayoral Awards, which recognise people with a disability who make workplaces, community groups and friendship groups great places to be.
The award winners were announced at the Carnival of Fun, a free celebration of International Day of People with Disability today, Friday 1 December 2023.
A member of the Sing Song Signers and a talented sports person, Toby Reynolds, has been awarded the Rising Star award for his participation in community activities and prowess on the sporting field.
Toby has represented the Northern Territory at the Special Olympics in ten pin bowling and in athletics as a junior, and currently plays Rising Stars basketball and participates in winners league bowling and athletics.
Toby was recognised for his efforts in leading by example while advocating for people with disabilities through his participation and success in various sports and activities.
Toby connects with people through sports, and his participation has allowed him a better understanding of individuals with disabilities as well as helped him develop different communication tools and styles.
A passionate advocate for people with lived experience of disability, Izzy Dak has been awarded The Champion Award for his tireless work in various working groups and advisory boards including the NTPHN Access and Advisory Group.
Izzy is a life member of Integrated disAbility Action and in the last 12 months has volunteered at many events including the Carnival of Fun, All Abilities Expo, Australia Day Oz Fusion 2023 and the Royal Darwin Show.
A genuinely kind person, Izzy was recognised for easily building relationships by taking the time to make himself available to the community, enabling people with a disability to share confidences with him.
Izzy utilises his proactive attitude to advocate on behalf of people with a disability by raising issues in the community.
Lord Mayor Kon Vatskalis praised the two worthy winners of this year’s awards, which are now in their fifth iteration.
“I would like to personally congratulate Toby and Izzy, not only on their award wins, but also for the tireless work they do in the community for people with a disability,” Mr Vatskalis said.
“These awards were put in place to recognise individuals with a disability who have made outstanding contributions to the Darwin community, and Toby and Izzy have done that in spades,” he said.
“We were very impressed with the calibre of nominations received this year and I would like to thank everyone who submitted a nomination as well as congratulate everyone who was nominated for the work they have done in our community over the last year.”
Winners of each category received a cash prize from a local disability organisation, a trophy and invitations to City of Darwin functions throughout the year.
This year, the Champion Award was sponsored by Go Getter and the Rising Star Award was sponsored by Integrated disAbility Action (IdA).
