Speeches
Tuesday, 01 August 2023
Reception for Ice Factor
I warmly welcome you all to Government House this morning.
I begin by congratulating each and every one of you for choosing to participate in the Ice Factor Program.
Since Ice Factor began 19 years ago, driven by the vision of Marie Shaw, it has had the support of the Governor of South Australia as its patron.
I know our previous Governors – the Hon Marjorie Jackson-Nelson, Rear Admiral The Hon Kevin Scarce and the Hon Hieu Van Le – very well, and I know we share a collective pride in the efforts of students who take part in Ice Factor.
As joint patrons, my husband Rod and I are also proud of how the program has grown over time, with 22 groups participating in 2023, a Kaurna Boomerangs team – the only indigenous ice hockey team in Australia, which recently played against a First Nations team from Canada - and now a New Arrivals team as well.
I have not tried ice hockey, but it looks like a lot of fun and an enjoyable way of maintaining fitness. I preferred sport on water rather than ice and rowed in pairs, fours and eights when I was only a little older than you are.
I also know that many of you have worked hard at school to earn your place on the team and I know – again from rowing – how good it can feel to be part of a team.
That is a great achievement and I hope that you continue to apply yourselves at school with the same determination and enthusiasm.
Through this program, I hope you’ve found that we can learn so many important lessons in life by being a team player, building self-discipline, persistence, strength of body and mind, and leadership.
And these values will help you to achieve success in many areas of life - at school, in your employment and in the community.
Many Ice Factor participants have gone on to even bigger things in life.
For example, I’m sure you know that there are three former Ice Factor participants – Izak Rankine, Tyson Stengle, and Phoenix Spice – who now play in the AFL.
Students, I hope you all enjoy taking the friendships gained and skills learnt from this program into other aspects of your life.
I thank Ice Factor’s generous sponsors and donors, as well as all the volunteers who fundraise for the program and provide life skills training for its students.
In the future, I look forward to hearing from the Ice Factor team about how you are all going, and about all the fantastic things you are doing with your lives.