Congratulations to Katherine resident Maddy (Madeleine) Bower, on receiving the Indigenous Allied Health Australia (IAHA) 2019 Award for her Commitment to Indigenous Health.

Currently working with Flinders NT Katherine campus as Lecturer in Indigenous Health, Maddy is passionate about Aboriginal health and culture and has previously worked with Sunrise Aboriginal Health service, Fred Hollows Foundation and with the Banatjarl Strongbala Wumins grup. At Flinders University Maddy ensures a learning space which focuses on two way learning processes and delivering appropriate resources to educate the students.

Maddy has lived in Katherine all her life, with family extensions out to Borroloola, Alice Springs, Tennant Creek and Elliot peoples. Maddy’s mother played a significant role in her life and contributed to her cultural learnings today, along with other cultural mentors such as the elders and Banatjarl Strongbala Wimun’s Grup, Traditional Owners and many others.

Maddy is the youngest of 12 children and has learnt that if you need to be heard, actions are better than words in most cases. Although Maddy became a late bloomer in educating herself, her passion for learning grew and her recognition of the importance of research and evaluation in making positive change happen for Aboriginal people.

Maddy has worked alongside many talented and skilled members of the workforce and understands that the role of volunteering is critical to maintaining community engagement, to advocate for social change, and for improving health for Aboriginal people. Maddy has volunteered with the Katherine NAIDOC for 10 years and over the past few years, Maddy has also worked with the Katherine Stolen Generation group, and Banatjarl Strongbala Wimun’s Grup, supporting and mentoring.

Maddy has worked hard to become a better person and create a career where her knowledge and skills would be used for the better of humanity and improving Aboriginal health.