Helen Warnock is a partner at Kennas Chartered Accountants located in Rockhampton. She has worked with the firm since leaving university helping rural clients with their taxation, business improvement and succession issues. She has a Bachelor of Business, a Graduate Diploma of Taxation and is a Fellow member of the Chartered Accountants Australia & New Zealand.

Helen lives on a beef cattle property at Morinish 50 km North West of Rockhampton with her husband and son, so fully understands the issues and challenges faced by rural women. She enjoys visiting client’s properties and meeting with the family groups to discuss their business issues.

She recently completed RSC’s Grazing for Profit and Next Steps programs.

Helen is looking forward to continuing with the QRRRWN board for another year.

Leonie is a 49-year-old, wife, mother and grandmother. Leonie holds a bachelor’s degree in Social Work and she currently owns and manages a Disability Support business working with people in Regional, Rural and Remote Queensland communities, assisting them with their disability and mental health needs. Leonie has been a Boxer, Bull and Bronc Rider, Nurse, Food and Beverage Manager, Event Coordinator, Indigenous Advisor to the Prime Minister, Child Safety Officer, NDIS Support Coordinator, Rural and Remote NDIS Local Area Coordinator, Social Worker and Counselor.

Leonie currently works amongst some of the most honest, hardworking, down-to-earth, amazing people it has ever been her honor and pleasure to meet and she feels that she is blessed to be able to undertake the type of roles that she does. My life (and my heart) has been changed my genuine earth angels who struggle daily to simply survive day-to-day due to the complications of their disabilities.

Leonie was first introduced to QRRRWN when she was nominated for the Strong Women In Leadership Awards last year and felt that she had found an organisation that saw women for the strong, resilient and hard working people that they are and recognised in the organisation a link that she had been looking for – the interest, ability and capacity to provide women throughout Queensland with the framework to connect to one another on any level they needed whenever and however they needed.

Leonie has a constant desire to learn new things and to create new bonds and believes that with QRRRWN that this is not only possible but inevitable.

Melissa and her husband are partners in a cattle property at Haly Creek in the South Burnett. She also manages a farmstay business and a vineyard on the property.

Melissa began her career as a nurse before gaining a Bachelor of Arts degree, a Post-Graduate degree in Library and Information Management and a Graduate Diploma in Writing, Editing and Publishing. She has been the senior journalist for online business-to-business website, Forkliftaction since 2009 and also writes freelance.

After living in Brisbane for 29 years, Melissa returned to the family property with her husband and son in 2011 and has since concentrated on re-branding the farmstay and wine businesses as well as building stock numbers and improving the property. She is the immediate past-president of the Barambah branch of QRRRWN and feels that it is vital that people involve themselves in the community and lend whatever skills they have to making their community a better place for everyone.

Melissa believes that QRRRWN has the power to make a difference in rural, regional and remote women’s lives through connecting women with the skills and people that can help them make informed decisions about their careers, their business and their personal development.

The paddock to plate movement and the arts are her passions and she would love to be more involved in bringing those two aspects of rural and regional Australia to a wider audience.

Life has come full circle for Genevieve, after having a small business in partnership with her husband for 14 years, she is embracing family life and has returned to her pre children teaching career working casually until the next ‘thing’ comes along.

Genevieve has always lived in regional Queensland and believes that there is nothing as fantastic as embracing your community and supporting its people. She is the current past founding president of the Callide Dawson Chamber of Commerce, has a Bachelor of Education and a Dual Cert 4 in Bookkeeping and Accounting.

She believes that if you are passionate about a cause you should fight for it, don’t complain about the system, challenge it, change it or mould it. Genevieve’s motto is you get out of your community what you put in to it.

Genevieve has a passion for connecting with others and the opportunity to meet people and broaden her tribe is one of the reasons she joined QRRRWN. She is of the opinion that right now in this digital era of social media, the ability to make and maintain connections across our great state is so much easier. Connecting and supporting fellow rural women is a passion of Genevieve’s, she believes distance should not be a barrier and that all regions can embrace and support each other.

QRRRWN’s network and the people she has met in it has allowed Genevieve to be part of a bigger collective of resilient, supportive regional women who embrace each other in times of need and support each other in times of joy. Connect, Network and Inspire are words which Genevieve embraces and is passionate about. She is looking forward to her time on the QRRRWN board.

Gail Russell, GAICD, has a diverse working and volunteer career. Born and raised on a farm in Mackay, and attending an all girl’s boarding school in Rockhampton, she originally qualified and worked in the sugar industry as a sugar chemist around the Mackay region. Changing direction later on saw her work in the finance sector – from a small loans outlet to manage the money market desk of a large merchant bank in Sydney and then to a credit union after moving back to Queensland.  She has always held high level administrative positions for employers and their clients, and this has included, board support, events organisation and management, and general administrative functions.

Now living in Cairns, she is a director (voluntary) of the Cairns RSL Club Ltd and member of one of the committees assessing applications for their Community Benefit Fund.  She is also secretary and everything coordinator to a busy sports club that has hosted large sporting and other fundraising events.

She is a Graduate of the Institute of Company Directors, holds Diplomas of Events and of Management.  She also has Sugar Technology and Securities Institute Certificates.

QRRRWN has held a special role in my life over the last couple of years.  It has kept me informed, involved and connected with other likeminded women in our ever-changing world.  I first become involved with QRRRWN as a part of the History Project with Cecily, transcribing interviews, doing book reviews, and interviewing members from which I gained an immense appreciation for the strong history and achievements of many amazing women.  Gosh, did they have some stories to tell!

I have worked in the rural industry for 30 years, mostly remotely, as a single mother with two children (now grown and gone). I am a beef breeder and producer situated in central Western Queensland and am slowly expanding my enterprise, and value adding to my business through various creative endeavours.

My skillset is large and varied; a horse trainer, contract musterer, dozer operator, truck driver through to station manager, branded beef marketing and business management, all in a male dominated arena… My strengths are Project Management, visionary and futuristic outlooks for our industry and I consult with various media channels to best promote our rural identity.  I have been featured in Graziher magazine, Wander of the West campaign with Edwina Robertson, Channel 7’s Queensland Weekender program and the Queensland Country Life.  My story has also been used a brand ambassador for various organisations like RB Sellars, and Ergon Electricity.

I feel strongly that QRRRWN’s remote members need as much support as possible.  There are a great many remarkable, talented, resilient women who are forging careers, businesses and creating strong focus on community and family, and do it with very little resources.  I would love to have these women onboard, growing the organisation and diversifying QRRRWN into more remote areas through networking, knowledge, creativity and upskilling.

I am a passionate advocate, contributor and participant in the rural industry and would love to contribute to this amazing organisation.

Sarah Grayson is originally from the UK and has been a police officer for 26 years in a diverse range of fields and locations – from homicide and anti-terrorism work in London to crime prevention, community development and road safety in rural and remote Queensland.

Sarah’s wealth of experience, knowledge and skills adds tremendous value to rural Queensland communities. She has a natural ability to form trusted relationships across culture and demographics. Sarah’s integrity and easy rapport have enabled her to flourish in her outback Queensland policing role, and she loved every minute of it.

Sarah’s dedication has been acknowledged through the many projects she has initiated and delivered. In 2016 she received two prestigious awards: the Qld Road Safety Award for Ongoing Commitment to Road safety, and the Australasian College of Road Safety for Innovation for her project Stay on Track Outback. She was also a finalist in the Queensland Police Service Award for Excellence for her Project WASTID Drug Ice Awareness.

Sarah also has a passion for fitness and is an avid boxer. She sees tremendous benefit in this sport, not just for her own personal fitness, but as a way to connect with others in her community. She previously ran the Charleville Blue Light Boxing Gym and held weekly classes for all ages and abilities. She believes in the value of getting physically active and sees boxing as having the power to break down barriers and unite people in a way little else can.

A move to the Moreton Bay Region enabled Sarah to enhance her community work through innovation and partnerships with local agencies for a youth drug & alcohol project; community events; successful grant applications; sponsorship and more.  Sarah is dedicated to working with her community, supporting and empowering women across the state and being the voice for the future.

Megan is a Queensland based media consultant with more than 15 years’ experience as a journalist, PR professional and public speaker. Born and bred in Mackay between the cane fields, cattle yards and coal mines, she went on to graduate from Townsville’s James Cook University with a Bachelor of Journalism in 2003.

Megan has since enjoyed a career that’s included life on the road as a rural and regional television reporter for ABC News covering north and north-west Queensland for nearly a decade, a contributor and staff journalist for rural current affairs program, ‘Landline’, and more recently working across the university, local government and not-for-profit sectors.

She is now running her own business as an independent media consultant and freelance journalist, following years as a Senior Account Director for a large agri-PR firm. A ‘media all-rounder’, she’s earned a reputation as a reliable, people focused communications professional, a trusted storyteller and an advocate for rural Australia.

Megan’s greatest interest lies in remote, rural and regional Australia – specifically the agricultural and indigenous sectors – and helping to share the stories of people, products and powerhouses who are bridging the bush to big smoke divide.

Now based at Yandina Creek on the Sunshine Coast, Megan is married with two sons and an ageing brown Labrador (crossed with something!) named Ollie.

Dr Rachel Hay has an undergraduate degree in Marketing and has recently completed her PhD ‘The engagement of women and technology in agriculture’. Her research interests centre on technology adoption and agriculture, social marketing, behaviour change, readability and communication and widening participation in education. Within these areas, she is active in research relating to technology adoption by women in agriculture, digital inclusion, and marketing communication effects and effectiveness and how this translates to behaviour change, including readability in populations sectors that face literacy and numeracy challenges. Her work on technology adoption has been published in reputable journals and in a 2016 Parliamentary Enquiry into Innovation in Agriculture and she has presented at local, national and international conferences and forums. Academics and industry stakeholders have cited her work and she has given numerous media interviews regarding research findings. While completing her PhD, Rachel has worked as a research assistant and sessional lecturer (undergraduate and postgraduate Marketing, HR, and WIL subjects) for James Cook University. Research projects focussed on trans-disciplinary approaches to sustained behaviour change in social marketing and environmental protection interventions and on various other projects including widening participation, the Digital Homestead Project, Instant Feedback Assessment Techniques, Business Coaching, Climate Change, FIFO and the Creative Industries. Prior to her role as an early career researcher, Rachel has worked as a jillaroo on a small cattle station, as a technician in the sugar cane industry and as marketing officer in the financial services sector.

Jessica Goldie is a barrister at the private bar in Toowoomba. She practices predominately in criminal and family law. Jessica was born and raised in Toowoomba and has worked all throughout regional Queensland. 

Jessica has extensive advocacy and legal experience, having worked for the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions from 2009 to 2018. Jessica was first called to the bar in February 2012, and shortly thereafter was appointed as a Crown Prosecutor for the State at the age of 23. 

As a Crown Prosecutor, Jessica appeared as lead counsel in over a hundred serious and complex criminal jury trials across regional Queensland, including Toowoomba, Cairns, Townsville, Ipswich, Roma, Dalby, Warwick, Mount Isa, Bowen, Charters Towers and Gladstone. Jessica has also circuited to Mornington Island, Doomadgee and Normanton for Court cases involving serious criminal allegations.

Jessica went to the private bar at the beginning of 2018 after completing her Masters in Family Law. She continues to represent clients all over Queensland, particularly in remote and regional areas. Jessica has a keen interest in ensuring access to justice for those living in remote and regional Queensland. That experience has allowed her to become familiar with the struggles that women often face in regional communities and plans to bring this knowledge to her work on the Board of QRRRWN.