Speeches
Saturday, 04 March 2023
Opening of Novita Christies Beach Hub
Rod and I are very pleased to join you this morning, as joint patrons of Novita, to launch the Christies Beach Therapy and Community Hub.
Thank you also to Uncle Tamaru for his Welcome to Country.
In the past 12 months it’s been my great pleasure to spend time in your community, and to see first-hand how your services help people with disability to shine and reach their potential.
I have visited the very impressive NovitaTech store - the largest and most comprehensive Assistive Technology retail experience in Australia – as well as volunteered in your cafes with clients from the Transition to Work program.
These clients impressed me with their level of skill, and I was struck by the joy they took in their work.
They were met by Novita facilitators with clear instruction, patience, kindness and encouragement.
It was clear the clients felt supported and encouraged, and were regularly celebrated for their achievements.
Rod and I thank everyone who works in the Transition to Work programs, as well as Novita staff and volunteers more generally – you are all doing an extraordinary job!
We have also come to appreciate Novita’s ‘get local’ philosophy, which drives a strong commitment to ensure clients can access their services with maximum ease and efficiency.
In light of this, we congratulate Novita on its ambitious expansion in recent times.
It’s been a busy few years, with the move to new headquarters at Hindmarsh, the creation of new hubs in Modbury, Clare and Warradale, and now Christies Beach.
We congratulate Novita on creating the Christies Beach Hub as an inclusive environment for people of all ages, with vibrant therapy rooms and activity spaces which help Novita staff to design activities to support the specific goals of clients.
Thank you to the Novita Board and staff for their vision and dedication to bringing the Christies Beach Hub to life.
As always, we warmly thank all Novita supporters and volunteers for their commitment to the organisation and its clients.
We trust you will enjoy working in this impressive new building.
I thank the Chappell Builders and architect Walter Brooke as well for their contributions.
Congratulations once again, and it is now my great pleasure to declare the Novita Christies Beach Therapy and Community Hub open!