Inspiring Aboriginal youth worker Maddison Peisley knows all the barriers disadvantaged indigenous youth face.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The 20-year-old overcome most of the same barriers herself and now wants to inspire other young people to strive to reach their potential, regardless of their background.
Last week Ms Peisley emerged triumphant after a "year from hell" to claim a swag of awards - including Student of the Year - at the prestigious TAFE NSW Excellence Awards - Southern NSW.
The Wollongong youth worker won four awards all up, including for Trainee of the Year, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Student of the Year and Technology and Business Services Student of the Year.
It comes after a challenging 2020 for Ms Peisley, where she spent more than five weeks in hospital after complications with the birth of her first child, Dakaree.
"My waters broke at 30 weeks, which is obviously extremely early and I was rushed to a hospital in Sydney," Ms Peisley told the Mercury.
"I stayed in hospital for a few weeks before being allowed home to Wollongong. But I still had to go into Wollongong Hospital daily for check-ups. I was induced at 36 weeks on the dot.
"Dakaree was four weeks early but he is perfect now. He is such a cheeky boy."
Ms Peisley, who is a youth worker at Southern Youth and Family Services (SYFS), admitted she had an unruly high school life before enrolling in a Diploma of Youth Work at TAFE NSW Shellharbour in 2019.
"While living with mum in Newcastle I mucked up a bit and got sent out to dad's. Having left school after two terms of year 7 I resumed school in year 10," she said.
"Growing up a disadvantaged youth myself, now I just want to help kids in situations like I was when I was that age.
"I want to try and remove the barriers and get them to where they want to be."
The Wandandian woman of the Yuin nation is in a position to do that as she has now completed a business administration traineeship at SYFS and is working in the organisation in a role split between administration work and acting as a mentor to young jobseekers.
She was hoping to use her star turn at last week's TAFE NSW Excellence Awards - Southern NSW to inspire other young people to strive to reach their potential.
"It was incredibly surreal to be acknowledged in that way and I really hope it can impact on the young people I work with to continue studying," said Ms Peisley, who recently completed a Certificate III in Business Administration at TAFE Shellharbour.
We depend on subscription revenue to support our journalism. If you are able, please subscribe here. If you are already a subscriber, thank you for your support.