Dinner with their Royal Highnesses, that is…
The Australian newspaper on Wednesday printed a list of the 55 guests that were invited to dinner at Government House Thursday night with Prince Charles and his wife, Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall.
The press statement identified the dinner guests as people who had made ‘significant contributions in sport, business, philanthropy and public life’.
Looking at the guest list, there were few I recognised. You can check it out yourself at this link.
But it got me thinking – who is invited and why? Also, what would they talk about with the Prince, our future king? Here is what I found.
Table mates
Twelve guests were associated with Prince Charles, either working for him or representing him here in Australia. Six were from the defence forces and four were politicians, including John Howard (the only ex-Prime Minister attending despite Rudd, Gillard and Abbott all being in Canberra that day).
Two businesspeople (both women) and three philanthropists (also businesspeople) attended, plus three sportspeople – including the winning jockey of the Melbourne Cup, Michelle Payne.
One was head of a Japanese based international aid organisation which is also a major sponsor of the arts (Midori Miyazaki).
There were 12 partners.
Quiet achievers
There were seven people, however, who were there primarily because they stand out for their individual citizenship. I wonder if you know many of them (the first four were all category winners in the 2015 Australia Day awards, pictured below):
- Ms Rosie Batty
Ms Batty became an advocate for domestic violence victims and campaigner for fixing the failures in government processes relating to the protection of women and children, following the murder of her son Luke. She was named 2015 Australian of the Year.
Drisana is a 22 year old deaf woman from Perth who advocates for deaf people to receive the support and funding for them to access to the sign language Auslan in day to day activities. In 2015, she became Young Australian of the Year.
Juliette is Founder and CEO of GIVIT, an online charitable service that lets you see a list of everyday items that are urgently needed by someone in the community and connects you to trusted charities so you can donate. Over 221,336 marginalised, vulnerable and disadvantaged people have been assisted since 2009. She was awarded Australian Local Hero 2015 in this year’s Australia Day awards.
Prolific, award winning children’s author and Australian Children’s Laureate 2014-2015, Jackie French, is patron of many organisations for the welfare of young people. She is also described as “historian; ecologist; dyslexic; a passionate worker for the right of every person to learn to read and have access to the written heritage of humanity, and for every child to have the books that bring them joy and the inspiration to create the future”. She was awarded Senior Australian of the Year 2015.
- Mr Tom Calma AO
Tom Calma has been involved in Indigenous affairs at a local, state and national level and worked in the public sector for 40 years. He is Co-Chair of Reconciliation Australia and was named by Australian Doctor Magazine (2010) as One of the 50 Most Influential People in Medicine in Australia.
Mahboba Rawi was forced to escape Afghanistan under Soviet control and became a refugee in Pakistan. She later came to Australia. After facing many hardships in her own life, she founded Mahboba’s Promise in 1998 to raise funds and awareness among the Australian community as a way to create a sustainable, self-sufficient future for Afghani women and children
- Mr Shea Spierings
Shea was successful in being appointed Australia’s United Nations Youth Representative 2015, having applied for the role. A Queensland university graduate, he comes from mentoring roles for indigenous youth, as well as working to raise awareness of indigenous issues.
All very accomplished and interesting people. There must have been some great dinner table discussion!
