Seniors share their story with students

Des Orr was 28 years old and full of passion and ideas. He had a vision for helping people, like him, with a disability. Importantly, he also had a solution.

In 1980, HHelp was born - Help Handicapped People Enter Life Project. It was a solution-focused group based on self-help for people with a disability. Today, HHelp is part of YellowBridge QLD and Des' legacy is growing and thriving.

Des' story will be shared in a new book, Wise Humans of the Downs, featuring the life experiences of 30 local seniors as told to Toowoomba secondary students.

“We can learn so much from the older members of our community and we wanted to help share their wisdom and tales,” YellowBridge chief executive officer Penny Hamilton said.

“It is fascinating to hear how life was in previous generations and how people survived triumphs and tragedies along the way. We believe that everyone has a story to tell. The ordinary is just as important as the extraordinary and they help us to have more compassion, empathy and appreciation for others.”

We are very pleased to be partnering with St Mary's College on this exciting book which will be launched during Seniors Week in August.

Students recently spent time with our senior participants to listen and record stories from their life.

St Mary’s College Assistant Principal Identity Paul Grealy said the students were excited to test their interview skills and be part of a published book.

“We had students from years 9 to 12 jump at the chance to be part of the final group that would meet and interview the senior participants including a few St Mary’s Old Boys,” Mr Grealy said.

“This is a special opportunity for them to connect with an older person who they are not related to and have an interesting discussion about their life,” he said.

“The College has a proud history of providing experiences for our students that cultivate compassion, community service, justice and courage. Experiences like being part of this project are invaluable to developing responsible and caring young men.”

The project is supported by the Queensland Government with funding under the Advancing Queensland: an age-friendly community 2018-19 grants program.

Over the past 100 years, the path to women's equality has been long and challenging. And it has relied on many determined people to progress the 'gender agenda' along the way. In the late 1800's and early 1900's the focus was on activism and securing the right to vote and equal pay for equal work. Fast-forward to the 1970's and widespread feminist action saw women rallying, protesting and lobbying hard for inclusion, influence and equality. The 1980’s saw an array of 'Fix the Women' programs that were well-meaning in trying to help women become more confident, visible, connected and assertive - but many reinforced a notion that women needed to 'act like men' and 'fit' into existing patriarchal structures and organisations if they were to succeed.

Today, the focus is on changing the culture of organisations and finding the right balance. As the leader of a large organisation, I know the importance of culture and balance. Women's equality in our contemporary world is no longer a 'women's issue' but rather a business issue with enormous impacts for our communities.  

The race is on for the gender-balanced boardroom, a gender-balanced government, gender-balanced media coverage, a gender-balance of employees, more gender-balance in wealth, gender-balanced sports coverage … and the welcome list goes on. Gender balance and fair representation is essential if we want our economy, and society, to thrive. Everyone has a responsibility to support a gender-balanced world. And the good news? Everyone benefits from gender-balance too.  

From grassroots activism to worldwide action, we are entering an exciting period of history where the world expects, and wants, balance. We notice its absence and benefit from its presence. Let's build a balanced world. Everyone has a part to play - all the time, everywhere. Happy International Women's Day on March 8.

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