By Jesse Graham
TWO Yarra Valley icons will be representing Victoria at next year’s Australian of the Year Awards, winning state-wide accolades on Wednesday 16 November.
On Wednesday night, Yarra Glen footballer Jason Ball and Worawa Aboriginal College executive director Lois Peeler were announced as the 2017 Victorian Young Australian of the Year and Victorian Senior Australian of the Year by Governor Linda Dessau and Anthony Howard QC at Melbourne’s Government House.
Mr Ball, 28, received his award for his work in promoting LGBTIQA inclusion and diversity in sport and schools, after being the first footballer to come out as gay at any level of the sport.
Yarra Glen Football Club, where Mr Ball plays, rallied behind him and the Pride Cup was started in 2014 to address homophobia in the sport, drawing large crowds and celebrity speakers each year.
Speaking to the Mail on Thursday morning, Mr Ball said the news was “still sinking in”, and that he was “very proud and very honoured” to be representing his state with the award.
He said that he felt the award was an acknowledgement of his work in promoting inclusion for same-sex attracted and gender-diverse people, but was also timely with the ongoing debate around marriage equality and the Safe Schools program.
“We need people to be visible and proud and be the change they want to see in the world, when it comes to fighting for our rights,” Mr Ball said.
“As a former ambassador for the (Safe Schools) program, I’ve seen the great work it’s done.
“I’m just as passionate about that setting in terms of school as I am for sport – in terms of members of our community … if they don’t feel safe and included and welcome, it has a terrible flow-on effect for their lives.”
Though the Pride Cup message had reached a national level, with St Kilda hosting a Pride Match as part of the 2016 AFL season, Mr Ball said more could be done.
“We need to get to a place where if an AFL player were to come out, it wouldn’t be a news story – it would just be part-and-parcel of the game,” he said.
“That’s the end goal – we need to get to a place in schools where every student who is same-sex attracted or gender diverse doesn’t feel the torment of having to hide who they are, or be marginalised or isolated as a result.”
Mr Ball said his advice for young LGBTIQA people was to not be afraid of coming out or being proud of their identity, and that people would accept them for who they are.
“Being gay doesn’t define me, but it is part of who I am, and I am proud to be myself and my message for them would be: don’t be afraid,” he said.
“If it can be OK in country football, it can be OK anywhere.”
Ms Peeler’s award, meanwhile, was presented for her work as chair of the Eastern Regional Aboriginal Justice Advisory Committee, executive director at Worawa Aboriginal College and former member of pop group The Sapphires.
She said she was part of the “founding family” for the college, with her late sister, Hyllus Maris, founding the school.
“My work is to build on the vision of Hyllus and those who worked to establish Victoria’s first Aboriginal school,” she said.
“Today, Worawa aims to provide preferred futures for our young Aboriginal women through a holistic education program based on an integrated academic, wellbeing and culture program.”
Worawa is a boarding school for Aboriginal women for high school Years 10 to 12, and Ms Peeler said the school addresses the “intellectual, social, physical, emotional and cultural wellbeing of each student”, through mainstream education and Aboriginal pedagogy.
Her work as chair of the ERAJAC involved liaising with government agencies, community organisations and elders to address issues in the Aboriginal community – a focus of this work was engaging youth with “education, sport and cultural strengthening”, aimed at diverting young people away from the justice system.
She said her work over the years had been driven by “a passion to make a difference” in the experiences of Aboriginal people.
“Many of my family members were at the forefront of bringing change to improve the conditions for our Aboriginal communities,” she said.
“I walk in their footsteps – it’s in my DNA.”
Both Ms Peeler and Mr Ball will represent the state at the annual Australian of the Year Awards on 26 January, 2017 in Canberra, where both will run against other state representatives for the national award.
