A Message from Our President

This year proved to be another extraordinary year as COVID-19 continued to influence the way we live and work. The pandemic presented challenges for all Victorians, in particular those who are most vulnerable, such as people with disability and the elderly.

MiLife-Victoria’s board, leadership team and staff should all be very proud of the way in which they have been able to continue to support clients under such challenging circumstances. In the last 30 years our organisation has never seen such challenging times, and yet the resilience of staff and clients has seen the organisation adapt and change. It now feels that we are on our way to living with COVID-19 and continuing business as usual despite the constant challenges of illness and wearing PPE to protect from infection.

This year saw us farewell a number of long-standing board members. I would like to take this opportunity to formally thank former President, Mark Packiyanthan, former President and most recently, Deputy-President Darlene Neu and Director Matthew Ziedin for their dedication and years of service to MiLife-Victoria. Their leadership has made MiLife-Victoria what it is today and will always be remembered.

With the departure of three board members we embarked on a recruitment process to attract new talent to our board. In May we welcomed Dr Sidney Chandrasiri, Dr Nataliya Shkuratova, Karen Major and Samuel Abdelsayed to the team. This team, together with existing board members, Genevieve Irving, Kelly Johnson and myself collaborated with clients and families as well as the organisation’s leadership to set a bold new strategic direction for the next three years. Thank you to everyone who was involved in the process.

The strategy will see MiLife-Victoria invest in our people, quality, and continuous improvement, while developing new and innovative services to meet the broad range of client needs for their whole lives. It is an exciting time for MiLife-Victoria as we enter a period of improvement and growth while continuing to deliver the wonderful programs and support our valued clients and families.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank my fellow board members for their efforts in the 2022 financial year. After the conclusion of the financial year, Genevieve Irving and Kelly Johnson announced their retirement from the board to focus on their families. Both have contributed so much to the MiLife-Victoria board and community, and we thank them for all they have done for Milife-Victoria and our clients. Drs Chandrasiri and Shkuratova and Samuel Abdelsayed will not be continuing with the MiLife-Victoria board, but we have several outstanding new and returning faces joining us. Jennie Solis, who has been a member of the MilifeVictoria community since 1992, through her sister who is one of our wonderful clients has jumped at the opportunity to return to the board and we are incredibly lucky to have her, as she has a wealth of both professional and personal experience in the disability space. Jeremy Worthington is a passionate member of the local community and brings a caring and person-centric business approach. We have been approached by several other inspiring members of the local and broader community, and I look forward to updating you at our Annual General Meeting in November.

This year’s Annual General Meeting will see the return of in-person meetings, and we hope to make it a party. We would love to see as many clients, families, and support people in attendance as we celebrate a challenging but successful year and take the opportunity to see each other in the flesh.

I would like to thank Chief Executive Officer, Amanda Youngs for her leadership and passion. Thank you to our extraordinary staff for their commitment, dedication and resilience, in what has been yet another challenging year. And finally, saving the best until last, thank you to our wonderful clients and families who are the reason we do what we do.

Alix Holston President, MiLife-Victoria Board