She was awarded the prestigious honour at the Katherine Town Council's Australia Day Awards last week for her long-serving dedication to the Katherine Show Society and the Australian Air Force Cadets.

The annual event awards citizens who have made noteworthy achievements and gone out of their way to make Katherine a better place.

For Mrs Highet, described by alderman John Zelley at the awards ceremony as "extremely kind hearted", the nomination celebrated a woman "heavily involved in the Katherine community".

Arriving in Katherine in 1978 for a three year nursing contract at Katherine Hospital, Mrs Highet said she became involved in a myriad of community events to create the change she wanted to see.

"I am a big believer in giving back to a community. You can't whinge about something and not step up to change it yourself," she said.

With most of her family entrenched in Katherine before she arrived - her mother played a key role in establishing the Red Cross Homes on Riverbank Drive - she said she has since put her heart and soul into building up the town.

"I stayed in Katherine for family, but then I saw that there wasn't enough on for youth.

"In most small towns it comes to a certain age for young people and all of a sudden there is not much to do."

She started as a parent helper with the Air Force Cadets when her son was 13 and fresh from signing up.

Like most volunteer-driven organisations in Katherine at some point or other, the cadets was on the brink of folding in 2018 with the then Commanding Officer leaving town.

"The cadets is a very important service in Katherine, and I couldn't watch it sink, so I became the Commanding Officer of 803 Squadron," she said.

The step up was on top of her role as president of the Katherine Show Society, and volunteer time at St Johns Ambulance.

"Cadets gives kids a good look at what life is like in the military, as well as incredibly good skills for life. It is about team building, understanding how to be a leader and take command, but also how to follow command," she said.

While she will be stepping down as Commanding Officer in the next year, as she packs her bags and heads to the south with her husband, she said she is hoping the younger generation will step up to keep Katherine alive.

"As a senior in the community I look at the youth and I think there could be much more input, whether it is joining a committee, helping the tick market, or the Katherine Show," Mrs Highet said.

"We have a lot of great youth here doing amazing things like fighting for climate change, but we have to remember that there are a lot of events and organisations that could do with a young perspective - to help keep things relevant and alive."

She said the Katherine Show is a perfect example of the need for young minds.

"Right now we have a show run mostly on volunteers between the ages of 55 and 65, I think it is a privilege to get old, but we can get stuck in our ways. We need these young people to come in and ignite vigor."

In a short 12 months, Mrs Highet will be on the road, but in the mean time she is on a mission to fill her shoes at the cadets while making her last year as president of the Show Society one to remember.

"Katherine will always be home, but it is time to move closer to family," she said.

"The award was the perfect beginning to my last year in Katherine. It was validating and humbling to think that someone believes I have done enough to be a noteworthy nomination."

While you're with us, you can now receive updates straight to your inbox each Friday at 6am from the Katherine Times. To make sure you're up to date with all the news, sign up here.