1. BROKEN HILL BUSINESS AWARDS
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Mr JOHN WILLIAMS (Murray-Darling) [6.15 p.m.]: On Friday 11 September I attended business awards in
Broken Hill—similar awards are held at Berrigan and Wakool—where great businesses in the community
are recognised and the people who contribute to the success of the those businesses are acknowledged. It
is great that awards are handed out in communities because it gives spirit to businesses and obviously the
desire to achieve excellence. No doubt on that Friday I saw some of the best of businesses nominated for
awards. The businessperson of the year was Terese Zaknich who runs Tom, Dick and Harry's in Argent
Street, which sells mainly kitchenware and has a coffee outlet that also sells food. That great business is
professionally run and people are very supportive of it.
The executive businessperson of the year was Karren Howe from the Barrier Social Democratic Club in
Broken Hill who has done a magnificent job transforming it into what it is today. She really deserved that
award. Others worthy of mention are the female young achiever of the year, Jessica Burton, who runs the
local Nova employment. She is a lovely young lady who is totally and utterly committed to finding work for
the disabled. The male young achiever award was Luke McCarron who runs Temple of Fitness, Broken
Hill. The support person award went to Jess Johnson from Broken Hill First National. The winner of the
newly created people's choice award was Tara Lewis-Christie.
I had the honour of presenting some awards for induction into the hall of fame of businesswomen who have
passed away in the past 12 months. They were both magnificent ladies. Originally Jamie Perry ran a
pottery shop with her husband. She had loved flowers from when she was a young girl and started a florist
business within that shop. She was very successful and the business was well supported by the local
community. She battled with cancer. She was a fighter but unfortunately she succumbed to cancer in the
end. Jamie's brother, Jason Lehmann, accepted the award on behalf of her family. The other inductee, the
late Maria Petkovich, came to Broken Hill from Yugoslavia with her family in the 1950s. My wife told me she
acted as a translator when Maria and her sister started school because they could not speak English. Maria
did a magnificent job not only in business but also as a great worker for the Red Cross.
She supported her husband Peter in Rotary and I had a lot to do with Maria when she worked with the local
Napredak club, which is a Yugoslav community club. She was a great family person. It was an absolute
pleasure to be in the company of Peter and Maria. They were people who loved life and I saw Maria last
year at the police presentation where her son Miroslav, who is a local detective, got an award. I presented
the award to Miroslav on behalf of the family. There is no doubt that this hall of fame induction etches in our
memory two very valuable citizens of Broken Hill who unfortunately are no longer here, but who will be
remembered forever for being not only great people but great business people.