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Attitude Award gives champion a boost

Mike Gourley says receiving the 2011 Attitude ACC Supreme Award couldn’t have come at a better time in his life.

Mike had a stroke earlier in the year and was feeling a bit down. Winning the award made him feel as if the past 54 years of his life had really meant something.

“Receiving the award was a huge boost,” Mike says. “It honoured my parents who had given me a great start in life and ignored the doom and gloom of my disability. My Mum was really thrilled watching the DVD of the awards.”

Mike was born with Holt-Oram Syndrome, a chromosomal disorder that leads to defects in the upper arms and heart. For much of his career he has advocated for the rights of people living with disabilities to participate in the community, work places, or on the sports field.

He was National President of the Disabled Persons Assembly when he represented New Zealand in its work at the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Mike is also a host of the Radio New Zealand programme “One in Five”, which is named to represent the fact that one in five New Zealanders live with disabilities and covers key issues they face.

Similarly, the Attitude Awards celebrate the lives and achievements of people with a disability. Now in its fifth year, the nominations for the 2012 Attitude Awards have opened, promising to celebrate a brand new set of winners with great prizes.

Mike says the prizes were a bonus to winning the awards and shared them to thank people close to him who helped him both in his career and in his recovery.

“Using part of the $5000 worth of air travel provided by Air New Zealand, I called my cousin and his family up from Christchurch to spend time with me, because they didn’t have enough money to fly up themselves,” says Mike.

Mike also used his two complimentary nights at the Museum Hotel in Wellington to say ‘thank you’ to his wife’s brother and partner, who flew over from Australia to be with them.

“All these people contributed to where I have got to and I felt that it was right to say thank you,” says Mike.

He says people should look to nominate people they know for the various categories in the Attitude Awards because even being selected as a finalist can make a significant difference to that person’s life.

Inspired by Attitude Pictures (TV One, 8:30am Sundays), the fifth annual awards evening will again be a black tie dinner, this year at Auckland’s Viaduct Events Centre on November 29.

ACC, Lion Foundation, New Zealand on Air, Westpac, Toyota, Drake Medox, Air New Zealand, Ministry of Health, Wayne Francis Charitable Trust are among sponsors continuing their support.

Attitude host Tanya Black says Kiwis don’t tend to shout about their own achievements.

“We need family, friends, colleagues and acquaintances to let us know of tremendous people who might be living an ordinary life but achieving some extraordinary things,” she says.

There are seven categories in the awards: Sport Performer of the Year, Courage in Sport, Artistic Achievement, Youth, Spirit of Attitude, ACC Employer Award and the Making a Difference Award.
The ACC Supreme Attitude Award is selected from the category winners.
Nominations are open until August 15. Nomination forms can be downloaded from the Attitude website (http://www.attitudepictures.com/attitude-awards).
Nominations can be emailed to: [email protected], or posted to Attitude Awards 2012, PO Box 9071, Newmarket, Auckland, 1149.

Tags: attitude