Westpac Community Leader Finalists Announced
4 November 2013 at 12:45 pm
The inaugural Westpac Community Leaders Awards, which recognises Not for Profit leaders making a significant contribution to helping those who are most in need, have announced its finalists.
The finalists, selected by the Awards Administration Panel, were spread across four categories: Start-up Not for Profit Executive; Established Not for Profit Executive; Treasurer; and Social Entrepreneur. The overall category finalists will be selected by an Executive Judging Panel.
Finalists are:
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Start-up Not for Profit Executive: Melanie Cass, EDAR Arts, Manager (VIC); Kevin Robinson, Little Wings, CEO and Founder (NSW); and Melanie Tate, Puddle Jumpers, CEO and Founder (SA).
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Finalists for Established Not for Profit Executive:Nicky Howe, Southcare Inc., CEO (WA); Margie Jenkin, Landcare Tasmania, Executive Officer (TAS); Rachelle Towart, Australian Indigenous Leadership Centre, CEO (ACT).
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Finalists for Treasurer: Allen Chen, United Nations Youth Australia, Treasurer (ACT); John Dawes, Riverland Youth Theatre, Treasurer (SA); Neville John, Kildonan Uniting Care, Treasurer (VIC)
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Finalists for Social Entrepreneur: Michael Combs, CareerTrackers, Founder and CEO (NSW); Tania De Jong AM, Creativity Australia, Founder and Chair (VIC); Dimity Dornan AM, Hear and Say, Founder and Executive Director (QLD)
Westpac has supported the Australian Social Sector for almost 200 years.
“We understand the importance of leadership and the role it plays in developing a sector that is a significant contributor to the nation’s economy,” Barry Thatcher, Westpac’s National Head of Education and Social Sector Banking, says.
“Australia’s Social Sector employs over 1 million full time workers and has over 4.6 million volunteers. Each one of these individuals is a community leader.”
The winner in each of the four categories will win $5,000 and $5,000 worth of Westpac Davidson Institute financial education training. The Davidson Institute is Australia's First School of Money, backed by Westpac Banking Corporation. It provides an extensive range of financial education, from free seminars to facilitated sessions on Cash Flow to Superannuation, and accredited courses in finance.
The winning leaders themselves will also receive a Westpac MasterCard® Gift card to the value of $500 as a personal reward.
Winners of each category will be announced by Jason Yetton, Group Executive, Westpac Retail & Business Bank, on November 20.
To read more about the finalists for the Westpac Community Leaders Awards click here.
To find out more on Westpac’s customised range of banking solutions to suit Not for Profit organisations, charities, associations as well as single-interest and community groups click here.
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Westpac Community Leader Finalists: Here we meet the eight finalists whose nominations were also outstanding and demonstrated excellence in the community sector. Finalists for Start-up Not for Profit Executive Melanie Cass, EDAR Arts, Manager (VIC) Melanie’s nomination showcased her strong values-based leadership of the large Victorian-based not for profit. Melanie has displayed perseverance, courage and determination in her mission to connect artists with a disability with their wider community. Just nine months old, EDAR Arts is already running at a balanced budget due to Melanie’s success in gaining community sponsorship and support. For more about EDAR Arts: https://www.facebook.com/edararts Melanie Tate, Puddle Jumpers, CEO and Founder (SA) Melanie established Puddle Jumpers as a support service for disadvantaged children in her local area. By sharing her vision with the community, Melanie obtained rent-free premises and then secured donated labour and materials to refurbish the site, to an estimated value of $400,000. She has also developed income streams and expense savings that forecast an operating budget of $0 annually. For more about Puddle Jumpers: www.jumpinallthepuddles.org Finalists for Established Not for Profit Executive Nicky Howe, Southcare Inc., CEO (WA) The pressing social need of delivering quality care to Australia’s ageing population is being ably addressed by Nicky’s vision for young people to take on skilled roles as passionate contributors to the aged care sector. Bolstered by winning a social innovation grant, the programme aims to impact the sector with sustainable, quality care outcomes for the elderly and employment opportunities for the young. For more about Southcare Inc: www.southcare.org.au Margie Jenkin, Landcare Tasmania, Executive Officer (TAS) Following destructive bushfires in Tasmania, Margie reacted quickly to the urgent needs of the community and rallied local businesses to assist fire-affected households. She established a number of sustainable initiatives for the re-vegetation and protection of the environment, which will see long-term benefits for farmers and wildlife. Maggie is admired for her values-based commitment to the cause. For more about Landcare Tasmania: www.landcaretas.org.au Finalists for Treasurer Neville John, Kildonan UnitingCare, Treasurer (VIC) Neville’s outstanding financial leadership when tough decisions needed to be made means the 132-year-old Kildonan can expand its capacity to assist more people facing social and economic hardship. Neville generously shares his many years of accounting and governance experience. His manner is described as quiet and humble; his approach as proactive and passionate; and his impact as immense and transformative. For more about Kildonan Uniting Care: www.kildonan.unitingcare.org.au John Dawes, Riverland Youth Theatre, Treasurer (SA) This creative hub’s primary objective is to provide high quality artistic opportunities for youth. And John’s innovative fundraisers have become sustainable funding sources for the youth theatre that has seen social outcomes in improved mental health, welfare, cultural awareness and self-esteem. John is recognised for his tireless dedication to the youth of the Riverland community for more than 28 years. For more about Riverland Youth Theatre: www.ryt.org.au Finalists for Social Entrepreneur Tania De Jong AM, Creativity Australia, Founder and Chair (VIC) Tania has proven her great leadership skills in establishing a scalable model to grow Creativity Australia to a nationwide singing movement. Since 2008, she has attracted more than 3 million dollars to support the program. Creativity Australia measures and reports on a wide range of social outcomes, strengthening the appeal of this organisation to the private and social sector. For more about Creativity Australia: www.creativityaustralia.org.au Dimity Dornan AM, Hear and Say, Founder and Executive Director (QLD) Dimity founded Hear and Say in 1992 after meeting one young boy whose deafness stopped him from communicating his needs. Now her centres help 600 children a year to hear, listen and speak. Dimity’s continued advocacy has attracted private, corporate and government partners, and her investment in strong research networks is forging pathways for inclusion and productivity for deaf children. For more about Hear and Say: www.hearandsay.com.au |
