MA Ageing (Global Pop Health), MA Com (Marketing), FCPM (Invited Fellow AMI)

Rachael is dedicated to making a difference to the quality of life of older Australians and believes there is a different future for our ageing population, one that puts humanity before profit and allows people to be seen, heard and supported with empathy, openness and compassion.  

Rachael’s previous experience was Associate Director (Aged Care specialist), Management Consultancy for KPMG, a CEO and Founder of Business Strategic Planning Consultancy in aged care and medical devices industry. She joins the Meaningful Ageing Australia team with extensive Brand Product Leadership roles, including a solid foundation in Health Sales Account Management spanning over 25 years.

Based in inner Sydney, Rachael is a carer and spiritual practitioner and her passions include learning about indigenous culture, meditation and philosophy, pilgrimages and the power of song. 

MA (App Ling), Grad Dip Div, Grad Dip Soc Sci (Adult Lit Ed), BA Lang, Dip Mus (Jazz)

Kemeri returns to spiritual care after a number of years as a lecturer in the Division of Health Sciences of UniSA in the areas of Indigenous student success, intercultural communication for healthcare professionals and community engagement. Prior to this, Kemeri held a state lead role with the Uniting Church in South Australia in strategic intercultural engagement with CALD communities. Kemeri is currently an aged care spiritual care practitioner based in Queensland and has worked in a number of pastoral and spiritual care contexts in Bluecare, Wesley Mission Qld Aged Care, Hummingbird House Children’s Hospice and Uniting Care Qld Prison Chaplaincy.

Kemeri’s expertise includes sociolinguistics and intercultural engagement and she has a background of consultancy in CALD perspectives in organisational leadership, workplace communication and CALD community and leadership development. Passionate about culturally relevant care in the context of pastoral and spiritual care, Kemeri loves engaging with diverse staff cohorts in raising aspiration and capacities to incorporate effective spiritual care in relational engagement within aged care. Dignity, relationship, identity and sense of purpose are among some of the values Kemeri holds most dear in her work. Kemeri is blessed to be raising six children with her patient husband in her Latino-Australian household in Brisbane, connecting regularly with the Spanish and Portuguese migrant communities of Queensland.

BBus, PGradDipBus, MCom(HRM)(Dist), FCPA, GradDipChap, MChap,MSCA

Marilyn’s early career was spent in accountancy practices, including 16 years in her own taxation and business services practice. She then obtained post-graduate qualifications in both Business Management and Human Resource Management, leading to roles in: Corporate Services; Company Directorship; Adult Education; Group Facilitation; Negotiation, and Mediation, as well as expanding her financial advisory services to include Deceased Estate and Succession Planning.

Marilyn became increasingly aware that maturing people were seeking not only sound financial and estate planning advice, but also the meanings of their lives, and spiritual wellbeing. She then made the move to multi-faith chaplaincy and pastoral care, and ended her long commercial career in order to study the new Master of Chaplaincy course available in Perth. During this time she completed a research project focused on assessing the spiritual needs of people living in residential aged care.

Marilyn works part-time as a Chaplain in Perth’s Prisons and serves on committees for: professional standards; Spiritual Care Australia; prison and aged care chaplains; and community seniors’ interests. Marilyn, her two adult children, and her five grandchildren all reside in a coastal region south of the Perth metropolitan area.

BA (Hons), Grad Dip Arts Management

Jacquie comes to Meaningful Ageing Australia with more than three decades of experience as a corporate communications strategist, executive coach & consultant, starting with her 8 years at McKinsey & Company.

Jacquie ran her own business for more than 20 years, speaking at professional events and coaching and developing CEOs, Boards and Executive Teams in the areas of leadership communications, servant leadership, executive presence and women’s visibility in leadership. 

She is also a stage trained actor, which has allowed her to develop deeper speaking and storytelling skills as well as bring a sense of play to work. She’s an avid reader. But her big love in this life — and her portal to contemplate and experience spirituality and connectedness — is animals and the wild places they live. 

MA (Applied Linguistics), GradDipEd (TESOL), BA, Cert IV TAE  

Pip takes the lead on The Little Things: Intercultural communication for personal care work in aged care workshops, whether train the trainer or sessions with direct care workers. She was the project coordinator, principal researcher and a training materials developer for The Little Things, 2018-2020. She has worked as an English as an additional language teacher and education manager in community settings and in ELICOS over the past 20 years. She works at a TAFE as a language, literacy and numeracy support teacher for students enrolled in CHC33015 Certificate III in Individual Support. She has also facilitated various adult community education projects with people experiencing homelessness or living in rooming houses, people with psychiatric illnesses, Indigenous Australians, migrants and refugees. Throughout her career, Pip has valued drawing on the experiences and perspectives of others to support meaningful engagement.

BA, DipAppSci (Nursing), GradDipEd (Health), GradDipHealth (Palliative Care), DipMissiology

Jenika is an experienced palliative care nurse, who has also had numerous roles in the aged care sector, both in residential care and in the community. She spent thirteen years working in Nepal, and helped establish the first palliative care training there. She continues to run workshops in Australia, Nepal and India on a wide range of topics, and in particular palliative care and communication skills. Jenika enjoys integrating spiritual care into her professional practice in these different cultural contexts. Jenika is passionate about adding meaning and purpose to life, in all its stages, through interpersonal connectedness and meaningful community. She lives in Melbourne with her husband and four children.