21 April 2010

St John Ambulance NT farewells a man of true community spirit after a life time of unwavering support for the work of St John Ambulance NT Volunteers across the Territory.

Adding to a lifetime of outstanding community contribution in the Northern Territory, Mr Kilgariff joined the Council of St John Ambulance as a Board Member in 1987 and was later promoted to Commander within the Order in 1999. His involvement has been central to building the profile and volunteer capability of the organisation in the Northern Territory over the last 20 years.

More recently, Bernie Kilgariff’s commitment to St John Ambulance in the Northern Territory and in particular to the Alice Springs Region, was recognised and he was formally invested as a Knight into the Order of St John in October 2008, in recognition of outstanding contributions to the work of the Order of St John. This is indeed a high honour for Mr Kilgariff, and one which is thoroughly deserved.

Bernie leaves behind a legacy to be proud of with his significant contribution to the Territory community, recognised in 1989 when he was awarded the Order of Australia Medal (OAM) in the Queen's Birthday Honours, as Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in the 1996 Queen's Birthday Honours; in 2001 he was awarded the Centenary Medal for service to Australian society through parliament and in 2004 he was awarded Senior Australian of the Year for the Northern Territory.

Primarily representing the Council of St John Ambulance in Alice Springs, Mr Kilgariff has consistently provided strong support to the cadet and adult volunteers of St John Ambulance. Even into his 80’s, Mr Kilgariff regularly volunteered his valuable time to teaching St John Ambulance Cadets about the historical aspects of the Order of St John and the ANZAC tradition, whilst continuing his role on Council.

Bernie will continue to be honoured as the inspiration for the St John Ambulance NT Trainer Award, which aims to recognise the significant contribution of St John Ambulance First Aid Trainers to the development of individuals across the Northern Territory community every second year.

St John Ambulance NT has recognised the significant contribution of Bernie by naming an ambulance in his honour, which will be permanently based in Alice Springs.

St John Chairman Mr Michael Mooney said “Board Members, Management, Staff, Volunteers and Cadets of St John across the Territory will dearly miss Bernie Kilgariff and his passion for the work of our volunteers in the community. Our heartfelt sympathy is extended to all family members and his enormous network of close friends and colleagues.

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Bernie Kilgariff to be honoured as a Knight of St John
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