Meet the Team

Aunty Frances Bond was an inspiration and a delight to all who knew her, ever ready to learn and to focus on making things better. As she said: “I’ve often thought that my energies are centred around healing and around helping people to achieve at their standard; setting goals and being able to heal themselves and achieve.”

Her goal was to educate and to heal, through every avenue she could find.

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Aunty Frances was a proud Waka Waka/ Kukuyalanji woman whose grandfather’s Country was in Far North Queensland. She made Victoria her second home, having first visited with the Harold Blair Children’s Project for a holiday.

She spent her working life in Melbourne, undertaking much training to better herself and to better represent her people.

When she retired from paid work in 2003, she continued her voluntary work. This included Port Phillip Citizens for Reconciliation, Whitehorse Friends for Reconciliation, Eastern Indigenous Family Violence Network, Chairperson, Eastern Metropolitan Regional Action Group, Mullum Mullum Indigenous gathering Place, Ilbijerri Theatre Company and Woor-Dungin.

She was on the Board of the Ilbijerri Theatre group for 15 years. Always one to find opportunities to promote reconciliation, in 2005 she participated in the Indigenous Capacity Building Program run by the Reichstein Foundation.

She then became a member of the steering committee of The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Community and Philanthropy Project. This aimed to strengthen capacity and increase know-how and confidence within indigenous organisations, enabling them to better access the resources and support of the philanthropic community. This was a radical idea at the time, but she had the insight and persistence to see it through.

She regarded this program as special. The capacity building “was provided in a culturally safe environment that allowed everybody partaking in it to feel safe.” Her work on domestic violence had given Aunty Frances a strong perspective on “making sure people are safe: emotionally, culturally, and every which way.

As a Founding Member of Woor-Dungin in 2006, it was her strong preference that the term "Aboriginal" be used instead of "Indigenous". Woor-Dungin's purpose was to get funding for the priorities of aboriginal communities, not to undertake programmes to meet the objectives of governments or philanthropic organisations. As she said: “There was a real need for us to learn how to open the doors of communication... between the Aboriginal community and philanthropy.”

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When Woor-Dungin experienced a financial crisis in 2012, even though she was challenged by cancer, she offered to raise funds by offering her services as a massage therapist and donating all funds to Woor-Dungin. She continued to be active throughout her final illness. She was inducted onto the Victorian Aboriginal Honour Roll on 29 April 2021.

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Aunty Frances was patient –“it will take as long as it takes” and generous. She always made time for a yarn, particularly if you were feeling low.

She has left a legacy in the strong organisations that she founded or supported. Her work on reconciliation continues through those organisations, local communities are inspired to become strong in culture and health, and community spirit continues to grow.

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Aunty Frances died on 19 August 2014 and was taken back to her own Country in Queensland.

Aunty Glenys was a dedicated and highly motivated Taungurung Elder who committed a large part of her life in building understanding, recognition, and pride in Aboriginal culture whilst proactively building knowledge of her clan through studies in genealogy.

Her studies were critical in identifying clans and helping people find their place

She was born and raised in Yea and in later years lived in Perth for a while with her own young family, working in the printing industry. She continued this work back in Victoria.

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Aunty Glenys lived the later part of her life in Lilydale, and during those years, she frequented ‘Oonah’ an Indigenous Learning centre in Healesville, run by Swinburne University. She was prolific in her study over the years, undertaking much professional study to help with her work on Boards and Committees.

She was a member of the Indigenous Advisory Committee for Yarra Ranges Council for a great number of years, ensuring that council recognised and respectfully acknowledged Aboriginal culture and history in any protocols and projects. Aunty Glenys was part of the (then) Department of Health and Human Services Aboriginal Advisory Committee ensuring a cultural lens over the practices of the Department and as part of their programs and projects.

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Apart from her ten year involvement with Swinburne Wurreker Committee, Aunty Glenys was also on the Healesville and District Aboriginal Co-operative Board, the Toor-rong Aboriginal Corporation, and was a founding member of Mirimbiak Nations Aboriginal Corporation (Native Title), which led to the establishment of the Taungurung Clans Aboriginal Corporation.

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Aunty Glenys was the Founding member and Board member of Mullum Mullum Indigenous Gathering Place, Woor-dungin. HICSA (now Oonah Health & Community Services Aboriginal Corporation), the Taungurung Clans Aboriginal Corporation, and GUMERIL.

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Even as she aged, her activity never slowed. In 2005 she worked with her community to build a sustainable market garden at Toor-rong on the Maroondah Highway at Healesville. A weekly food bank followed.

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Aunty Glenys passed away in February 2010.

I am an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander woman of Wuthathi, Mabuiag Island and Ambonese descent. I am a founding member of Woor-Dungin and will continue to be a member because I believe that support should be given to the Aboriginal communities in Victoria through philanthropic partnerships in order to grow and provide for our people those resources necessary to enhance life.

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I am a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, although not a current member. Currently I am a life member of Oonah Gathering Place, located in outer-eastern Melbourne. I am a nurse/midwife/maternal and child health nurse by profession, having gained experience in management and clinical services across the ages. I coordinated the Aboriginal Health Team in the Outer Eastern Metro Region for 11 years and built up the Aboriginal workforce team.

I have successfully completed my PhD on Aboriginal Women’s Business. More recently I was humbled to be inducted into the prestigious 2016 Victorian Women’s Roll of Honour.

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I have a passion for social justice and advocacy and I am a visionary and strategic planner. I would like to encourage philanthropic organisations and government departments to learn more about the resilience of Aboriginal people and the positive things that are happening in the communities throughout Victoria. I believe that Woor-Dungin showcases a model that could be duplicated throughout Australia.

In November 2016 Doseena was awarded a Churchill Fellowship.

Christa Momot is the Director of Momot Mentoring and, with Michael Bell, former CEO of Winda-Mara Aboriginal Corporation, a Director of Mookeye and Momot Consulting. Until recently she was the Stakeholder Engagement Coordinator for the Rethinking Criminal Record Checks Project at the Centre for Innovative Justice at RMIT University.

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Christa was the Woor-Dungin Co-Chair from 2009 to 2012, the Executive Officer from 2013 to 2017 and Community Development Manager from 2013 to 2019. She co-ordinated the Criminal Record Discrimination Project and Aboriginal Ex-Offender Employment Project. These led to the Andrews Labor government passing the Victims and Other Legislation Amendment Bill and publicly stating their commitment to introducing spent conviction legislation.

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Christa was the Executive Officer of the Reichstein Foundation from 2001 to 2012 and Executive Officer of the State-wide Women’s Community Housing Service from 1999 to 2001. She has more than 30 years of experience in community-sector management, together with policy and program development, advocacy, mediation, community development, teaching and mentoring experience.

In 2009, Christa was inducted into the Association of Neighbourhood Houses and Learning Centres Honour Roll. The Roll was initiated to recognise people who have made a significant contribution to the Neighbourhood House sector. And in 2019, Christa was awarded the Southern Metropolitan NAIDOC Non-Indigenous Community Person award for her commitment, support and advocacy for and with Aboriginal people.

Anne Jenkins is a Kamilaroi woman from north-western New South Wales. She has worked with the Indigenous community in the Yarra Valley for 23 years, and is a former chair of Woor-Dungin’s Committee of Management.

Simone Spencer is a proud Barkindji woman, who grew up in Dareton, NSW, 15km north of Mildura. After completing school she studied a Bachelor of Social Science (in Justice Studies) at Charles Sturt University.

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After leaving university Simone started work at the Mildura Aboriginal Corporation (now called Mallee District Aboriginal Services, or MDAS) as a family-support worker. Among her other roles at MDAS she was also a senior caseworker with the Prevention and Early Intervention Team and the Community Engagement Officer, which aimed to provide a cultural lens on MDAS’s policies, program development and service delivery. This work required liaison with key stakeholders and community, attending various meetings, groups, forums and any other networking functions.

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Simone has long been a volunteer with the Mildura United Soccer Club and with the Coomealla basketball and netball teams, in various playing, mentoring and coaching roles and in holiday programs.

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She has a great passion for culture, education, and empowering Aboriginal young people to become the next generation of leaders. She is especially passionate about leadership programs for young Aboriginal women. She believes our next generation of young Indigenous people have the capacity to stand up and be heard on what is needed for our culture and our families, to strive for a better and healthier future.

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Her current work is with the Department of Education as a Koorie Engagement Support Officer supporting a number of schools in the Mildura area. The KESO facilitates engagement in communities between school, families, students, key stakeholders, and organisations to build and strengthen partnerships.

The primary aim is to build cultural awareness and develop partnerships between schools, Koorie students and families to enhance community engagement, learning and development. Some of this involves new perspectives in the current course structure, more involvement of Koorie families in the life of the school, and more recognition and celebration of Koorie cultural events during the school year.

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Simone is a founding member of Woor-Dungin and a former vice chair, a journey that she acknowledges has been a great experience, and one which has changed her vision and direction in life.