INSPIRING OLD GRAMMARIAN

Patty in her school days as Head Girl with Barry Smith - Headmaster, Vaughan Rintoule (1987) School Captain and John Miller (1959) Board Chair.

PATTY KINNERSLY

Head Girl 1987 Little things, inadvertently, make a big difference Patty Kinnersly (you may remember her as Trish) says she sees examples of community resilience and hope all around her, despite the grind of lockdowns and restrictions.

“As we adjust to life in a pandemic, I see people finding new ways – COVID-safe of course – to connect and support each other. Simple things like neighbours checking in on each other or asking if someone needs a hand.”

For Patty, it’s vital that we build our own resilience, especially during challenging times. “One of the best ways is by looking outside ourselves… looking out for and looking after others where we can.”

Patty attributes her own resilience to her farming upbringing, her lifelong involvement with sport and her schooldays at Grammar. “Grammar was really good at modelling things that have served me well in my career and my life: the importance of respecting people and the place they’re coming from; how to build good relationships; how to connect with others. I felt so supported. We were like a family.”

She reflects on how the support she received set her up for the rest of her life. “The School invested in me. Teachers believed in me and what I could do. People fought for me. I still go back to those moments when an adult reached out to me. They’ve had a huge influence on me.”

For Patty, sport was the place where she could express herself and the vehicle through which she did most of her learning. “Sport was my thing. For others it was writing or music or something else, but for me sport was where I was really happy. It was where I learnt about people. About teamwork. About commitment. About how to get the best from people. About being gracious in winning and in losing. About leadership and what it means to bring people along and share power. But, mostly, it was where I learnt about myself.”

The self-belief she developed at Grammar has led Patty to a career of work and volunteer roles where she has the opportunity to help people feel connected to something bigger and part of something meaningful. For her, this is tied up in taking what makes her happy and finding a way to make that part of the bigger picture.

In her role as CEO of Our Watch, an organisation that works to embed gender equality and prevent violence against women and their children in Australia, Patty’s work involves helping people make the link between gender inequality and poor outcomes for women. She works closely with leaders at the highest level across every setting: sport, education, industry and government, right around the country.

“I’m talking to them about building equality and respect in their workplace. About being brave enough to challenge harmful words, actions and attitudes that don’t value women as equals. I draw on all the things I’ve learnt, starting by connecting on a really personal level and, from there, being able to have really productive conversations about promoting equality and respect.”

Patty’s current volunteer roles include being on the Board of the Carlton Football Club and the Australian Women’s Health Network.

“This work is about giving back, and also about opening new opportunities. I want to be part of things where I can have a positive influence and give people hope. Little opportunities are the things that, inadvertently, make a big difference.”

Patty says it’s incumbent on each of us to contribute to community when we can. “You don’t need money or special skills. It can be really small things that you can offer, like your time, or any positive contribution.” Patty says the pandemic has amplified existing disadvantage and it’s never been more important for those in positions of leadership and decision-making to be aware of the gap between advantage and disadvantage. “From principals and teachers to the coach at the local cricket club, it’s important to understand this so we don’t inadvertently leave people behind as we move through the pandemic. We all need to make sure we’re making the effort and finding different ways to bring people together.”

Patty is optimistic about what’s ahead. “Times like COVID have happened before and people have got through by looking after each other. Of course, we have to look after ourselves too. Find what makes you happy. They’re the things you’re going to invest in and work hard to improve on.”

Patty calls these her conditions of happiness. “These change and evolve throughout life. For me, while physical activity is still really important, nowadays I find my happiness by making sure I connect with nature every day.”

Patty with current Year 10 student Hetti Jones from Echuca. Patty was at Grammar with Hetti's parents Matthew Jones (1987) and Jodie (Nicholas, 1987).~ Patty was presenting to the Year 10 cohort about the prevention of violence against women, in her role as CEO of Our Watch.