A Cape York local who saved the life of her friend on a remote cattle station and champions vital initiatives has been named the 2022 RFDS Queensland Hero.
The annual RFDS Local Hero Awards, supported by Ergon Energy Retail, recognise Queenslanders who have gone above and beyond to support their community.
This year, inspiring RFDS Local Heroes were named from eight regions across the state, before communities voted for the Queensland Hero.
Today, the Royal Flying Doctor Service (Queensland Section) announced Emma Jackson, the Cairns region Local Hero, as the Queensland Hero for 2022.
Emma lives with her family on Wolverton Station in the Archer River region of Cape York. She is the founder of Conquer the Corrugations – an initiative which aims to raise awareness for mental health and suicide prevention in the remote region – and is also a dedicated sustainability advocate.
Emma’s determination to help others also saw her save the life of her friend Karryn, who suffered a ‘widow-maker’ heart attack when she visited Wolverton Station late last year.
RFDS (Queensland Section) Chief Executive Officer Meredith Staib congratulated Emma on receiving the 2022 RFDS Queensland Hero Award.
“Emma’s bravery and never-give-up spirit, along with her dedication to her community is truly inspiring,” Ms Staib said.
“We’re proud to be able to recognise Emma’s achievements and the amazing work she does to support the region.
“Delivering healthcare and supporting communities is a team effort, which is why we are so incredibly grateful to have people like Emma on the ground each and every day.”
Ergon Energy Retail Executive General Manager Ayesha Razzaq said Emma will be awarded a $20,000 grant courtesy of Ergon Energy Retail to put towards a health or wellbeing initiative in the community.
“All of the nominations for this year’s Local Hero Awards were amazing, but Emma’s story of courage and determination was an absolute standout,” Ms Razzaq said.
“While her efforts to save a friend’s life were nothing short of heroic, the initiative she’s proposing to set up with this grant is also inspirational. I am so pleased that we will be able to help her to achieve her goal.”
Emma said she is honoured to be named the 2022 Queensland Hero and is already planning how she will use the grant to support the region.
“I am hoping to use the grant to help fund an equine assisted learning program at Wolverton Station for communities and other properties across the Cape York region,” Emma said.
“I look forward to working with the RFDS and Ergon Energy Retail to develop this initiative further to benefit our community.”
