Sunday 12 May 2024

Member for Rockhampton, Mr Barry O’Rourke MP; Rockhampton Regional Council Deputy Mayor, Councillor Drew Wickerson; Health and Wellbeing Queensland Deputy CEO, Ms Gemma Hodgetts and Board Member Dr Shea Spierings; Curator of the Botanic and Kershaw Gardens, Mr Stuart Elder; distinguished guests, and all of you joining us for this morning’s walk – welcome!

I begin by acknowledging the Traditional Custodians of the lands around Rockhampton, and pay my respects to Elders past, present, and to all First Nations people.

Thank you for joining Graeme and me here today in this magnificent setting for our very first community wellbeing walk in Rockhampton — our first to date in regional Queensland.

At Government House in Brisbane, the working residence of Governors going back to 1910, we regularly host community walks through the 10 hectares of native bushland that make up part of the Fernberg Estate.

However, when I became Governor, I pledged to do what I could to ensure that every individual in our State, no matter where they lived, had the opportunity to lead a healthy and fulfilling life.

Fortuitously, soon after becoming Governor, I also became the Patron of a wonderful organisation committed to this very endeavour.

Health and Wellbeing Queensland, which is co-hosting this walk today, is an independent statutory body set up within the State Government’s Health portfolio.

It operates under the Health and Wellbeing Act of 2019, and its very hardworking and dedicated team, represented here today by Deputy CEO Ms Gemma Hodgetts, organises activities such as this one, aimed at promoting wellbeing – and crucially, reducing health inequalities across this very big State of ours.

As a former medical professional and now as a representative of all Queenslanders, regardless of how far they live from a capital city, I couldn’t be more supportive of the work the team at Health and Wellbeing Queensland do.

Throughout my term, I have made it a priority to connect with communities in regional areas and meet with as many people as possible while there.

So here we are, in this one of the oldest public gardens in the country, your magnificent, Heritage-listed Botanic Gardens, combining these two urgent priorities: promoting health and wellbeing and supporting regional Queensland.

This event might be about staying fit, having fun and being social, but it also symbolises our commitment to reducing health inequities, and to creating a healthier, more vibrant Queensland for generations to come.

Thank you.