21/09/2026
Dr Kris Rallah-Baker, it has been incredible to call you a dear friend, but most of all, it is an honour to know your journey and to witness your passion at work helping our people. ❤️🖤💛
From myself and the Board of the Nova Peris Foundation, it has been an absolute privilege to have you with us from the very beginning.
You are a remarkable man and a credit to your beautiful mother and father, your family, your people, and most importantly, to yourself and everything you have overcome and achieved along the way.
Your journey has certainly not been a straight line.
As an uncle once told a young Kris, getting where you want to be in life is rarely achieved in a straight line. Kris describes his own journey as a “zigzag” - one that ultimately saw him become Australia’s first Indigenous ophthalmologist. Today, alongside his private practice in Noosa, he continues outreach work in remote Indigenous communities, restoring sight and helping protect something even greater: the ability of our Elders to remain connected to Country, family and the intergenerational transmission of culture and knowledge. (ABC News (https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-09-20/kris-rallah-baker-is-blazing-a-trail-for-eye-specialists/107116850))
What I admire most is that after fighting his own battles and breaking through barriers, Kris is now working to make that road easier for those coming behind him. There are now six Indigenous trainees in the RANZCO program, with more Indigenous ophthalmologists on the way. (ABC News (https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-09-20/kris-rallah-baker-is-blazing-a-trail-for-eye-specialists/107116850))
Kris said something in this story that really resonated with me:
“For me, a life that means something is a life that gives back to others.”
That is leadership. That is purpose. 🙏🏾
And Kris, together we will continue to fight the good fight and pave the way - creating opportunities, opening doors and making sure the next generation doesn’t have to fight every battle that our generations had to fight.
So proud of you, brother. Your journey matters. Your work matters. And the path you are creating for those who follow matters enormously.
Keep blazing that trail. ❤️🖤💛👁️🙏🏾
📺 Australian Story – Eyes on the Prize
Monday 8pm on ABC TV and ABC iview.
Australia's first Indigenous eye surgeon Kris Rallah-Baker has walked a zigzag path, driven by family struggles and overcoming "unashamed racism".
