Each year, the Fraser Coast Disability Services Star Staff Gala Awards bring the community together for a single purpose, to honour the people who make care feel like family. It’s more than an event; it’s a night of gratitude. Staff, participants, and families gather to celebrate the quiet heroes whose daily work changes lives in ways that can’t always be captured on paper.
What Are The Star Gala Staff Awards?
The Star Gala Staff Awards was created to shine a light on those moments of kindness, patience, and laughter that define what disability support truly means.
Every award handed out carries a story of resilience, of teamwork, of someone who chose compassion even on the hardest day.
And this year, one of those stories belonged to Tayla, a support worker whose passion for her SIL house participants reminds everyone why this field matters so much.
When Josie, the organisation’s owner, stepped onto the stage with the award in hand, she spoke about the heart that keeps Fraser Coast Disability Service thriving.
Tayla’s name was called, and for a moment, the room paused. Then came the applause, long, loud, and deserved. Tayla’s words came straight from that heart.
| “Honestly, there are no words,” she said. “It’s just a rewarding job, and I could never think of doing anything else. I come to work every day, and he just had a smile… You just love what you do, love the people who need help. It’s amazing.” |
That sincerity isn’t new to anyone who’s worked alongside her. Tayla’s known for showing up, fully, joyfully, for her participants.
She’s the kind of support worker who notices when someone’s mood is off, who remembers inside jokes, who celebrates the tiniest milestones like they’re gold medals.
Her impact stretches beyond her roster; it seeps into the atmosphere of every SIL home and program she’s part of.
Later, she added with a laugh that summed up her whole outlook:
| “Their smile and their satisfaction are our award.” |
That simple line captured exactly what the Star Gala Staff Awards were built to celebrate, people like Tayla, whose measure of success isn’t applause but the happiness of those they support.
As the evening carried on, with music and laughter filling the room, there was a quiet sense that this was what community looks like. A network of carers and participants lifting each other, bound by purpose more than profession.
For Tayla, her certificate will be hung on her wall, but the real prize is in the work itself, the smiles she helps create, the lives she helps steady. The Star Gala Staff Awards might spotlight her for one night, but her light burns every single day.
If you would like to be a part of our amazing organisation, just like Tayla, please reach out. We are always looking for compassionate support workers to join our team of professionals who work everyday to change the lives of our SIL house participants.