Events

Roger Hunt has had a lifelong interest in history.

After a business career, most recently in executive search, he has researched the remarkable story of the Scottish Benedictine monk, James Robertson. Vindicta is a novel closely based on events in 1808.

A Scottish monk takes revenge on Napoleon. It is 1808. Napoleon is nearing the zenith of his power. Desperate to dent his supremacy, the British government sends James Robertson, a middle-aged, overweight monk on a secret mission to persuade a Spanish general to betray Napoleon.

M.C.: Noel Halford 

Source and photo: https://rogerhuntwriter.com/

'Charlie is a facilitation, resilience, leadership, and peacebuilding professional with over 30 years’ experience. His early experience is grounded in the security sector, and over the past decade he has expanded his experience to include working in South, South East, and Eastern Asia, Western and Eastern Africa, MENA region and Oceania. His areas of specialty include process facilitation, training design and delivery, resilience practice, leadership development, organisational and community systems change.

His experience expands through operational and strategic facilitation. Creating safe spaces and establishing connection between participants are key components to Charles’ approach. His personal education includes Leadership and Organisational Change, Peace and Conflict Prevention, Good Governance and Human Rights. Maintaining fitness, creating great and healthy food, trekking and music are the outlets that maintain Charles’ resilience and these outlets spill over into his facilitation practice'.

(Source: Space Melbourne) 

M.C. Dennis Shore 

Photo: Gary Spears via Pexels

M.C. Doug McLean

Trudy Poole, Past President of Rotary Peninsula 2.0 will talk about Play it Forward a joint venture between, Heartprint (based in Siem Reap), Rotary Overseas Recycled Playgrounds &  Rotary Peninsula 2.0 to deliver playgrounds from Australian communities to disadvantaged areas in Siem Reap, Cambodia. The initiative aims to give underprivileged children access to safe and imaginative spaces for play.

M.C. Katrina Flinn

Photo Courtesy: Trudy Poole

Ginny Giorgio is a retired family lawyer and former drama teacher dedicated to early intervention in domestic and family violence.

As Youth Director of Kingscliff Rotary, she founded Towards Respectful Relationships, a filmmaking program providing supportive, trauma-informed assistance to young people directly and indirectly impacted by violence.

This program is helping young people to recognise respectful relationships early — aiming for one less victim and one less perpetrator.

M.C. Dorothy Gilmour

Photo: Supplied by speaker.

Speakers are Emily Wilkinson is the founder and program manager & Voleak Pham is the Communications Co-ordinator of  ‘REACH Siem Reap.

A 'variety of programs which work to lift children and their families out of poverty are offered.

No single program alone can achieve this.

We have identified the following programs which operate simultaneously to make breaking the poverty cycle a reality:

We are passionate about keeping families together’.

M.C. Katrina Flinn

Photo Credit: Peter Borter, via Unsplash

Behind the Badge talks are not to be missed!

Come and hear Min share her insights, experiences and stories. 

M.C. Dorothy Gilmour

Photo: Jon Tyson via Unsplash

'Sue Williams bases her fourth historical novel, on her own family's legend that they are descended from Mary Ann and the Duke. In a beguiling mix of fact and fiction, she tells the rollicking story of the womanising Duke, whose appetite for women knew no bounds, the maid who was powerless to resist his charms, and her own quest to prove whether this was merely myth or a blood tie with history.

Her other historical novels, Elizabeth & Elizabeth, about Elizabeth Macquarie and Elizabeth Macarthur; That Bligh Girl, featuring Mary Bligh and her father, the notorious mutiny survivor and governor William Bligh; and The Governor, His Wife and His Mistress, about Philip Gidley King and his tangled love affairs, have all proved bestsellers.

Sue is also an award-winning journalist, travel writer and bestselling author of non-fiction. She lives in Sydney with her partner Jimmy Thomson, aka crime writer James Dunbar, and their two cats'.

(Source: Words and Photo:  Allen and Unwin)

M.C. Dorothy Gilmour

More to come.

M.C. Doug McLean

Prison Network is a not-for-profit organisation that has been supporting women in and beyond prison for nearly 80 years. Its vision is to create dignity, hope and purpose for women as they navigate pathways beyond the justice system.

The organisation works both inside prison and in the community, providing programs that build connection, strengthen family relationships, and support women as they transition back into everyday life. This includes in-prison programs, post-release support, and assistance with housing, employment, and community reintegration.

Prison Network takes a relational, trauma-informed approach, recognising the complex challenges many women face, and works alongside them to support long-term positive change for themselves and their families

Pattie Phillips is part of Prison Network, working in community and stakeholder engagement.

She works across partnerships, events, and initiatives that help connect the broader community to the organisation’s work. She also supports conversations that raise awareness of the challenges women face in and beyond prison, and the importance of strong, connected support systems.

Pattie will be speaking about the work of Prison Network, the impact of that work, and why supporting women through and beyond the justice system is critical to building stronger communities.

M.C.: Min Bell

Graphic and Words: Prison Network

M.C. Dorothy Gilmour

Photo: COTA Victoria 

George Hulse and Jimmy Thomson are the authors of The First ANZACS

'This is the unknown story of the combat engineers who kept World War I running. Although it has been repeatedly denied by the army, they were the first Australians and New Zealanders to land at Anzac Cove: in any combat, even today, sappers are always the first in and last out.

Samantha Clarke is an Ambassador for Mercy Ships Australia and is passionate about connecting people to meaningful impact. With a background spanning business, community engagement and national politics, she now shares the story of Mercy Ships and the life changing work taking place through the world’s largest civilian hospital ships, bringing free surgery, training and hope to people in need.

M.C.: Denbigh Richards

Photo Credit: Supplied

Laraine sets her Reggie da Costa Mysteries in the Melbourne of the early twentieth century, in the aftermath of the Great War and during the heady days of the 1920s, when gangs, sly-grog and gambling dens inhabited the back streets of Melbourne. 

In her talk, Laraine will discuss how she combined her love of crime fiction and history to depict historically accurate and lively settings for her Reggie da Costa Mysteries.

M.C: TBA

Photo: Supplied by speaker