Goal Setter Awards ceremony

May I begin by greeting everyone in the languages of the realm of New Zealand - English, Maori, Cook Island Maori, Niuean, Tokelauan and New Zealand Sign Language.

Greetings, Kia Ora, Kia Orana, Fakalofa Lahi Atu, Taloha Ni and as it is the evening and the sun has set (Sign)

May I specifically greet you: Pat Waite, Rotary District Governor; David Shand, Chair of the Tertiary Education Commission; Professor Andrea McIlroy, Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Massey University; Dr Linda Sissons, Chief Executive, WelTec; Christopher Robertson and Bill Day, President and President-elect respectively of the Port Nicholson Rotary Club; Award recipients and honorary members; Distinguished Guests otherwise; Ladies and Gentlemen.

Thank you for inviting my wife, Susan, and I to attend the Port Nicholson Rotary Club's Goal Setter Awards for 2008.

As Governor-General and Patron of Rotary New Zealand, it has been for me a pleasure to be at a real Rotary Dinner and to confer this year's Goal Setter Awards on such worthy recipients.  Congratulations to you all.

I would like to take an opportunity to speak briefly about the significance of a tertiary education and these awards.

Completing a tertiary qualification is a major personal achievement.  Doing so involves a significant investment of time, energy and money.  While tertiary study is not all books and examinations, there are many times when opportunities to participate in more enjoyable pursuits have to be declined, or at least deferred, because of the need to complete an assignment or to study for an examination.

When you graduate on the completion of your studies, you will be rightfully able to stand tall and celebrate with your family and friends your personal achievement.

But tertiary study is not only about individual achievement.  Reaping the rewards of a tertiary education also means that obligations arise in regard to the wider community that has also invested in your education.  And on that point, I note that it seems fitting that the Tertiary Education Commission is a keen supporter of these awards.

Tertiary education is not only an opportunity to better yourselves, but also to improve the community in which you live and make our country a better place.  

Each of the recipients of this year's Goal Setter Awards, while still studying, has shown a commitment to doing just that.  You have not only set personal goals, and overcome many obstacles, but you have also made a significant contribution to the wider community.  Each of the three honorary members here tonight—Melissa Moon, Ben Baker and Thomas Aitken—have also worked, in their own way, to better the world we live in.

The work of the award recipients and the honorary members reveal the qualities of true leadership, a concept that people often define quite differently. For me, key leadership qualities include an ability to listen, to be professional in your dealing with others, and to display integrity, honesty and respect.  Leaders need to keep their feet on the ground and, while setting goals, to also recognise that it is their purpose to serve. 

There is an old saying that "actions speak louder than words."  What you do in life says as much about who you are, and your commitment to those values, as what you say.  As you have shown, your deeds can be a positive example to others that promote positive change.  You can be strong role models for all New Zealanders, and particularly for others of our nation's young people.

I cannot think of better comment with which to conclude than one by a wonderful New Zealander, the late Dame Whina Cooper, whose words on the responsibilities of leadership capture this point well.  As quoted in the late Dr Michael King's biography Whina she said:

I can't sleep at night, because even at night I'm worrying about things and planning things.  It's the mana, you see.  If you've got it, it never lets you alone.  You have to be thinking about the people and working for them, all the time.

In conclusion, I wish to congratulate again the award recipients.  I would also like to thank the Port Nicholson Rotary Club for organising these awards and all the sponsors for contributing to this event.

And on that note, I will close in New Zealand's first language, Maori, by offering greetings and wishing you good health and fortitude in your endeavours. No reira, tena koutou, tena koutou, kia ora, kia kaha, tena koutou katoa.