Spring / Summer 2020 Newsletter
Over the last few months, we have throughly enjoyed reconnecting with families through our virtual catch ups around Australia and New Zealand. It was wonderful seeing familiar faces, welcoming new families, being amazed by how the children have grown, hearing about successes, milestones, challenges and goals.
CHARGE chats were held in WA/SA/NT, VIC/TAS, NSW, NZ and QLD, connecting over 60 people from our community! We had so much to chat about that we usually went over the allotted time! What strongly resonates for me from these chats is the rich source of knowledge and experiences we all have to share and how powerful it can be for families to tap into this unique knowledge base. Being able to connect to our tribe and have access to this font of knowledge is incredibly worthwhile and important to our community.
Read the write ups for each CHARGE chat.
A montage of the CHARG Chat video calls around Australia
Video meet-ups in 2021
We are planning more virtual group chats in 2021, but this time on specific topics, where families with similar needs can come together in an informal relaxed setting to chat about common challenges.
We want to know which topics you are interested in, so look out for an invitation to get your input on these.
Giving Tuesday is 1 December
Giving Tuesday Australia logo
Giving Tuesday is an annual opportunity for community to say thanks and give back to organisations making a difference in people’s lives. For this Giving Tuesday, I would like to sincerely thank each and every one of our past and present volunteer board members and supporters.
From our beginnings in 1994, we have had 39 individuals from our community donate their time and energy to being a board member and supporting our activities. Volunteers make the world go round and without this amazing commitment to our Association, we simply would not exist.
Board Circa 2003. From left to right, R Alan Stone, Madelene Rich, Lisa Killalea, Lisa Watson, Marie Patterson, Ken Patterson, Tiena Edmondstone, Rob Last.
Honour Roll of past and current Board Members
(in alphabetical order)
(Apologies for any omissions)
A special thank you to our long standing original Members (since 1994) Marea Howe, Mark and Nadia McKenna, Ken and Marie Patterson and Rob Last.
Board 2020
From left to right, Kath Green (Secretary), Madelene Rich (President), Mukesh Baluja (Treasurer), Rob Last (Vice President), Emily McDonald (WA), Annette Stocker (NZ), Elizabeth Levesque (VIC), Louisa Cameron (NSW) and special appearance by Phil Herborn (Louisa’s greatest support).
AGM 2020
Our AGM will be held on Tuesday 15 December 2020. We are seeking representatives on our board for South Australia and Queensland. Commitment is a 45min monthly meeting, connecting local families and helping fundraise.
If you are able to give your time and contribute to our Association as a board member, we would love to hear from you.
New visual identity...coming soon!
I am very excited to tell you that we will be launching a new brand for our Association. The board of directors have engaged a designer to develop a refreshed brand including a new logo, colours and fonts. This will be a modern design that truly reflects our personality and what we stand for. I cannot wait to share this with you in our next newsletter, before the end of the year.
Watch this space!