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Australia Day

Region Secures Australia Day Ambassador  

South Burnett Regional Council is delighted to announce Emeritus Professor Ken Donald as our 2020 Australia Day Ambassador.  Ken will be participating in Council's regional Australia Day Awards Ceremony to be held at the Kingaroy Town Hall on Saturday evening, 25 January 2020 and also attending a Citizenship Ceremony at the Kingaroy Australia Day Event being held at the Kingaroy Showgrounds on 26 January 2020.

Ken Donald has had a long career in medicine and medical education.  As an academic he has published extensively in peer reviewed journals and text books.  He has held numerous senior positions including Head of the School of Medicine at The University of Queensland, Director of Pathology Royal Brisbane Hospital, Deputy Director-General of Queensland Health, General Manager John Hunter Hospital, and Director of Medical Services Royal Darwin Hospital.

He has served on many committees including President of the Australian Cancer Society and Chair of a major committee of the National Health and Medical Research Council.  Ken was the inaugural chair of the Repatriation Medical Authority which restructured decision making in the war veterans’ compensation system and was made an honorary life member of the RSL for this work. 

Ken’s loyalty and commitment to the health of Queenslanders is unrivalled. He was honoured as a Queensland Great in 2012 and awarded an Officer of the Order of Australia for contributions to medicine, education and veterans’ health.

Ken currently works as a professor at the School of Medicine Griffith University.  He represented Australia in rugby as a Wallaby from 1957 to 1959 before retiring aged 24 to pursue medical studies, and managed the Wallabies from 1978 to 1980.

South Burnett Regional Council Mayor Keith Campbell, encourages residents to come along and meet Ken at the South Burnett Awards Ceremony, which starts at 6:00pm on the evening of 25 January.  "It is exciting to have Ken as our Regions Ambassador this year and I urge our residents to take advantage of this fantastic opportunity to stop and have a chat with Ken," he said.

The Australia Day Ambassador program is proudly sponsored by the Department of the Premier and Cabinet, in partnership with the National Australia Day Council.

Australia Day Events in the South Burnett 2020

For full details of events in the South Burnett please click here.

Previous South Burnett Australia Day Award Winners

Want to step back in time? Access previous South Burnett Australia Day Award Winners below: