Inspiring people

Video: A burly man with a neat beard drives an SUV that tows a jet ski on a trailer. He's interviewed in a garage decorated with old-fashioned postcards and signs.

Audio: Man: When there is something about us that's visible to the outside world, there's nowhere to hide.

Video: The man's parked on a boat ramp, with the jet ski trailer in the water. He walks around the SUV. His right leg is a prosthetic, his left arm finishes above the elbow, and his right hand is missing fingers. He winds a winch, easing the jet ski into the water. He pulls in a rope, looping it across his arm stump. Wet to the knees, he climbs onto the jetty.

Audio: Man: My parents just wanted me to grow up normally. If I wanted something and it was over the other side of the lounge room, they made me get across there. I can hop really well. [laughs]

Video: Holding the mooring rope, he walks up the jetty and ties off the floating jet ski. Standing on the jet ski, he cruises from the wharf.

Audio: Man: My disability is called amniotic band syndrome; literally all four limbs I've got a disability on. Every day you live with a disability, there's challenges that come up. If somebody says, "No", I say, "Watch me".

Video: As he motors away, sunbeams radiate from a log gap in the clouds, bathing the water with gentle light. In the distance, cranes loom above a cargo ship. The title 'Journeys' appears above the Australia Post logo. Aerial footage shows huge cargo ships moored at industrial wharves. There's a cluster of skyscrapers in the distance. The Australia Post logo appears in the top right corner. Heavy machinery moves a freight container. A forklift sits near stacks of pallets.

Audio: Man: I always wanted to work for a large freight company. People that worked for these companies were there for 15, 20, 25 years. Ultimately, that was the dream. A good paying stable job. The first job I applied for I was found to be unsuccessful at the time. A couple of years later there was advertisements for forklift drivers so I applied and was unsuccessful again.

Video: The man strides toward the forklift.

Audio: Man: I heard through the grapevine that there was a freight company – they were hiring basically anyone that had a truck licence. There was plenty of training agencies that said, "No, we can't do that". One particular agency said, "Look, we'll go out for a drive now." He goes, "You probably shift gear better than half the recruits that come through."

Video: The man climbs behind the wheel of a huge blue truck. With his arm stump, he presses a large button on the dash. The engine starts.

Audio: Man: I got my truck driving licence and feeling very positive about myself, so I thought, "I've got this job." I didn't even get through to the interview stage.

Video: He sits motionless in the truck. Later, he stands watching a truck drive away.

Audio: Man: If someone like myself that was, you know, determined, over-qualified, hard-working, but still was just met with, "No, no, no, no," something has to change. Just give me the opportunity, you know, I won't let you down.

Video: The man strides along a line of large blue trucks. He gazes up at the StarTrack logo on a cabin.

Audio: Man: I applied to StarTrack back in 2016 for a Fleet Controller's role. I was very sceptical, then I got a call. It was the HR department from StarTrack. They said that I had excelled in the interview and they gave me a start date, which was just...mind blowing.

Video: Wearing an Australia Post uniform polo shirt and black shorts, he stands near refuelling equipment. He strides through a StarTrack building. A truck drives away.

Audio: Man: 20 years after first applying in the freight industry, I got the job with Australia Post StarTrack. A Fleet Controller's main role is to ensure freight is collected in a timely fashion. It's extremely challenging. It's also rewarding.

Video: In an office, he types rapidly with his fingers and stump. The back of his uniform shirt features an Accessibility Matters logo. At home, he cooks on a barbecue. A girl hugs him. Carrying a tray of meat, he joins his daughter and wife at a table.

Audio: Man: I want to grow with Australia Post StarTrack and this is a message for people with all forms of disability – don't let it stop you. People told me that I'd probably never ride a bike, I'd never hold a car licence. People said, "You won't be able to hold a truck licence." And I said, "Watch me".

Video: He eats and laughs with his family.

Audio: Man: Kids especially, like, back through school they said that I'd never be able to do monkey bars. To this day, I can still not do monkey bars and that's one thing that's really got me my whole life.

Video: He poses with his wife and daughter in front of their suburban house. White text on a red screen reads, "To watch the full Journeys series, go to auspost.com.au/watch."

Audio: Voiceover: Just one story from over 60,000 team members, Australia Post. Delivering for Australia.

Video: "Delivering for Australia," appears under the Australia Post logo. 

Video: At a dining table, a young man with Down Syndrome, Michael, and a middle aged man, Greg, read through a list of suburbs.

Audio: Michael: Ashfield. Bullsbrook. Beldon. Brigadoon. Greg: Brigadoon, yeah. Good job.

Video: They are interviewed sitting side by side in the lounge room. Michael has dark hair and a beard, Greg wears glasses. Text: "Greg and Michael Richardson."

Audio: Greg: I'm really proud of Michael. Michael is very caring. He loves challenges. He loves to sing. He's a great kid. Great kid. 

Michael: Kid? 

Greg: Oh, sorry. Yeah, he doesn't like being called a kid. He's a great guy.

Video: Aerial footage shows a leafy seaside suburb. The title 'Journeys' appears in white text above the Australia Post logo. Family members of different generations gather around Michael and Greg as they look through an album of baby photos. The interview continues.

Audio: Greg: We moved to Australia from India. Girl: We went in 2001. Greg: 2001. 

Greg: And one of the reasons for coming over was Michael, for his future. And we just took the risk.

Video: They look through photos of a chubby baby and of Michael in a school uniform. The interview continues.  

Audio: Michael: Oh. Girl: Is that Michael? Child: Is that Michael? Michael: Yeah, yeah, it's me.

Audio: Michael: High school is very challenging. I'm always being deaf. If I don't listen to my teachers, I will...go to the principal's office. 

Greg: I felt, you know, Michael can do better than that. And I think every parent should feel that, because if you don't feel that, that kid is, you know, stuck.

Video: In a huge warehouse, large metal baskets of parcels flank conveyor belts. A red Australia Post truck contains baskets full of parcels. Greg holds a meeting for staff. They all wear bright yellow safety gear. Later, Greg takes photos.

Audio: Greg: So, I've been working for Australia Post for over 17 years. Every July, Australia Post will advertise for Christmas casuals, and I thought, "This is the perfect time. We should try and get Michael in." But he couldn't even read at the time. I took photos of all the signages and every evening after school, I would get Michael at the dining table and make him read.

Video: Michael and Greg read together at the table.

Audio: Michael: Aveley. Beldon. 

Greg: It was difficult initially, but Michael now knows half of the 3,000 suburbs in Western Australia. And now Michael is permanent part-time for almost two years now. Michael: Mmm.

Video: Trees are silhouetted against the bright orange horizon and the paler orange sky. Wearing yellow safety jumpers, Greg and Michael head into a building. They work among the conveyor belts or parcels. Tags with suburb names and postcodes hang from a rack. A long list of suburbs is headed 'Central Coastal'. Working with a colleague, Michael checks a parcel.

Audio: Greg: There are about 100,000 parcels which come through our facility every day. It has grown more than 100 times what we were, because every year there are new suburbs. Michael likes to go to the Gold Fields. Initially... 

Michael: No. I like to go to South Roads, GSR, North west, CCM and Gold Fields. Greg: You work everywhere. Michael: Yeah. Greg: Ah, OK, OK.

Video: In the warehouse, Greg runs a meeting. His staff, including Michael, stand in a large circle around him. Michael checks parcels on a conveyor belt, and grabs one. The interview continues.

Audio: Greg: Not as a dad, but as a supervisor, I follow up his work to make sure that some customer's parcel is not mis-sorted or going to the wrong place, and I've not found a mistake. I think he's just grasped the opportunity and he's really doing well.

Video: Greg, Michael and colleagues walk through the warehouse. Michael and colleagues chat at tables and near conveyor belts.

Audio: Michael: I love to work at Australia Post. It's a wonderful place. I chat with my friends about where they're born, when's their birthdays, and their love story also.

Video: Michael closes a metal basket, then writes on a document. He wheels a basket of parcels through the warehouse. He takes a parcel from the conveyor belt and examines its address. He chats and laughs with a colleague. Michael checks parcels on a conveyor belt. Nearby, Greg checks the contents of a basket.

Audio: Greg: Since Michael has started working at Australia Post, the management has employed many more people with disability in the workforce. To me, it's not about Michael. It's about looking at Michael and seeing, yes, he is capable of doing these things. These people bring so much life into the workplace and others in the workplace can also understand more about this and be more tolerant. And if ever a person with a disability should work in a place where they would get equal opportunity, I think that was the perfect place for Michael. 

Michael: He is proud of me. 

Greg: I am very proud of you, Michael. You're doing a fantastic job. 

Michael: Thank you.

Video: In the warehouse, Greg stands with his arm around Michael's shoulders. Parcels cruise past on a conveyor belt. 

The Australia Post logo appears on a red screen. Text reads, "Watch the full Journeys series at auspost.com.au/watch." 

Audio: Voiceover: Just one story from over 60,000 team members.

Video: On a red screen, the Australia Post logo appears above the words "Delivering for Australia."

Audio: Voiceover: Australia Post. Delivering for Australia.

Video: A man sitting in a home gym wraps his hands in preparation for boxing. An old portrait of Joe Frazier leans near hand weights. Trophies gleam. A framed photo of a coach and a teenager wearing a headguard is captioned "Ken Gary Gym". The man pummels a punching bag. He's light on his feet.

Audio: Gary: I started training when I was six years old and I had my first fight when I was seven. Dad had an amateur career. When my brother Bob got picked on at school, he said to us, "Well, I'd better teach youse how to fight." Six days a week we'd train.
I've never stopped training.

Video: Wearing fluorescent yellow Australia Post safety gear, the man rides a motorbike along a suburban street. Title: 'Journeys'. Text: "Gary Williams".

Audio: Gary: The whole time I was boxing, I was a postman at Australia Post. I actually bought the house on my mail run and...and I'm my own postman.

Video: In a post office, Gary helps sort mail. He puts on boots and gloves. In the gym, he puts on red boxing gloves.

Audio: Gary: I was 14 at the time I became a telegram boy and I would have been 16 when I become a postie. And that's what I've been doing ever since.

Video: A boxing match featuring the young Gary plays on TV. In his gym, Gary hits the punching bag.

Audio: Gary: I fought just over 200 amateur fights, and to get to the Olympics was the aim. I went to the 1978 Commonwealth Games in Canada and I fought at Madison Square Garden, Bangkok, Indonesia, New Zealand. It was a lot of fights. I never got hit very much, but I've been knocked down a few times.

Video: In the TV match, young Gary is knocked down. In his gym, Gary sits with his eyes down. Both past and present Garys get to their feet. Gary carefully checks a motorbike's front wheel. At work, Gary takes a folder from a cabinet door.

Audio: Gary: When I didn't get selected to go to the Olympics, it was disappointing. But, you know, if you get knocked down, you do the best you can to get up. You wipe your gloves and you go again. Boxing taught me a lot of lessons in life. With discipline, endurance, fitness, you've got to learn to pace yourself. You've got to be versatile. And that's the same with, you know, being a postie. You've got to be in the same place at the same time every day.

Video: Wearing safety gear, Gary wheels a motorcycle along a tunnel. He puts on a his helmet and rides off.

Audio: Gary: My alarm goes off at 5:33 every morning. I'm there at work 4 minutes to 6:00. I like to be on the road by 8:30. And I've only been late about 28 times in 50 years.

Video: In a country town, a post office sign sticks from a stately Victorian era building. Gary delivers to houses that have differing architecture and colour schemes. In the post office, he chats with another postie as he sorts mail.

Audio: Gary: Orange has grown a lot over the years. Back in the '70s and '80s, everyone would get a letter. Now there's not as many letters and more parcels. It's a big job - you know, roughly delivering to 7,000 different addresses. Doing it for so long, you know, you see the young kids that now have kids of their own. I know a lot of people. A lot of people know me. I know the people that are struggling and I sort of take the mail up to the door 'cause I know they're doing it hard. But I enjoy my job, enjoy the people I work with and the people I deliver mail to. And I've had a good run with Australia Post and, yeah, I'm proud to work there.

Video: Outside a house, Gary smiles with a dignified woman. Behind them, the clouds are tinted pink.

Audio: Voiceover: Just one story from over 60,000 team members.

Video: On a red screen, the Australia Post logo appears above the words "Delivering for Australia."

Audio: Voiceover: Australia Post. Delivering for Australia.