Speeches
Thursday, 10 October 2024
Guide Dogs SA/NT Morning Tea for World Sight Day
Thank you, Cliffy Wilson, for that gracious welcome to country.
Rod and I, as Patron of Guide Dogs SA/NT, are delighted to welcome you to Government House to mark World Sight Day and the upcoming White Cane Awareness Day.
I am sure Alfie, our Cavoodle, is looking out of the upstairs window and welcomes you too.
Friends.
We gather to celebrate the vital work undertaken in the community by Guide Dogs SA/NT and say thank you to those who support its mission.
For more than 65 years Guide Dogs SA/NT has been giving the gift of independence to people living with low vision, blindness, or other special needs.
Through you, people can achieve their goals and live the life they want.
Today’s World Sight Day provides a marker to highlight the importance of protecting our eyes and vision.
This year the theme Love Your Sight, has a focus on the needs of children’s vision and eye health and there are many ways we can love our sight.
Against that background, I urge everyone to encourage children to put down their electronic devices for a while and get outside to run, play, and explore.
I know kids like to tease each other when something is different, but we can encourage children to consider spectacles or other corrective glasses an important aid.
I also encourage adults to take time away from the screen at work or home, and to ensure their families have regular eye checks because early intervention can make a difference.
In Rod’s and my interactions with Guide Dogs staff, clients, volunteers, and supporters we have always been struck by your unwavering dedication to making a difference.
The respect that Guide Dogs SA/NT has engendered since its inception in 1957 has ensured community support for your mission.
Of course, Guide Dogs is more than dogs and a range of aids including the simple white cane and assistive technologies enable support to be tailored to client needs.
So much so that each year more than 6,000 hours of non-dog related support is given to your clients.
But the story of Guide Dogs is of course best told by the clients whose stories we will hear shortly.
Friends.
As a society it is essential that we invest in that which we value.
I thank the businesses and organisations which are investing in staff training to make their spaces and our community more accessible and inclusive for people living with blindness or low vision.
Thank you to the volunteers who generously donate their time and open their homes and hearts to raise the puppies who grow into the next generation of Guide Dogs.
Importantly thank you to everyone who has made the decision to invest in creating a strong and compassionate society through your heartfelt contributions.
Long may you do so.