2023 KIAMA ELECTORATE WOMAN OF THE YEAR: MICHELLE BISHOP

Today Wednesday 8th March is International Women’s Day and Member for Kiama Gareth Ward has announced Michelle Bishop of Shoalhaven Heads as the 2023 Kiama Electorate Woman of the Year recipient.

As part of International Women’s Day celebrations, Mr Ward said that Michelle Bishop was an extremely deserving recipient of the award.

“Michelle is an outstanding example of a local woman who balances all of life’s challenges. From family, to business, to community and volunteer activities, Michelle is a wonderful example of a local person doing amazing things,” Mr Ward said.

“As a hard-working and dedicated small business creator, owner and General Manager of Bangalay Luxury Villas and as a mother of four, Michelle is a great role model and ambassador for women in our local community and a thoroughly deserving recipient of this award.

“Michelle is also active in promoting the Shoalhaven Tourism industry, the official launch in November 2022 of the new South Coast Tourism Industry Association, proactively encouraging more and more people to visit, eat, stay and invest in our region and to help our local tourism industry to recover after a challenging few years.

“Born and raised here in the Shoalhaven, Michelle has also been very active in the local Shoalhaven Heads community along with the local Shoalhaven Heads Chamber of Commerce and Tourism.

“Having previously served as President, Michelle is currently still serving on the Shoalhaven Heads Chamber of Commerce and Tourism executive committee as Secretary. She is also a Board Member of Bundanon Trust.

“Michelle Bishop is an extremely deserving recipient of the 2023 Kiama Woman of the Year Award,” Mr Ward said.

Michelle Bishop said she was incredibly humbled to receive such recognition.

“It is an honour to be recognised with this award, the tourism industry on the NSW South Coast is one of the biggest employers and is a key contributor to the diversity of the local economy,” Michelle said.

“The tourism industry in our region is renowned for its collaboration and innovation through the South Coast Tourism Industry Association and the South Coast Centre of Excellence, I'm proud to have been instrumental in both.

“The ongoing support from all levels of government is hugely appreciated broadly by the industry,” Mrs Bishop said.

The theme for International Women’s Day 2023 is ‘Cracking the Code: Innovation for a gender equal future’. It's something we need to think about, know, value and embrace.

For more on International Women’s Day 2023, please visit the websites at: https://unwomen.org.au/get-involved/international-womens-day/ and https://www.internationalwomensday.com/theme.