Page 25 - Luce 2020

A l umni News

Amanda Jane Caroline Jane Knight is the 5th great Congratulations to the
Mortensen niece of Jane Austen and grew up in
(Isherwood Jane’s literary home of Chawton. The following JCH alumnae and
1989) I could Jane Austen Literacy Foundation is friends who received the
never have now in its fifth year, with volunteers
predicted the and donors from all over the world, following awards in 2019:
course my supporting literacy projects in
career – and my Australia, Ghana and India. It has
life – would take come a long way from the early days Australia Day Honours
when I arrived when Caroline and I taught ourselves
at JCH in 1989. At Melbourne University how to set up websites and use social Mrs Janet Osborn Limb AO (Cook 1956)
I studied Chemical Engineering; then media! To see the full story of how the For distinguished service to the
promptly went into a career in sales and Foundation was formed, please go to community through philanthropic support
marketing with Unilever. this link. Click here. for charitable, social welfare, and medical
research groups.
Three good years working in an ice Unfortunately, I had to step back from
cream factory as a food technologist/ both career and Foundation work after
R&D gave me a great foundation for my I was diagnosed with breast cancer. Queen’s Birthday Honours
career. Yes, I ate ice cream for a living, I have since been self-employed in
but I also learned how manufacturing property investment and short-term Ms Marita Cheng AM (2007)
and global companies worked. This has rental, which I love. For significant service to science and
proved to be an ongoing advantage as technology, particularly to robotics.
I moved further into the commercial I will forever be grateful for the
side of business. I had a six-month stability and camaraderie offered by Ms Helen Penelope Morris AM (1964)
secondment in the Thailand Innovation JCH in my vulnerable University years For significant service to the philanthropic
Centre which was life-changing, as it and hope to reconnect with many sector, and to community health.
introduced me to new cultures and JCHers.
colleagues across the Asia-Pacific. Dr Patricia Phair OAM (Johansen 1950)
It was a heady time in the 90s, in For service to women, to medical
Sydney. I got to experience both the research and to the community.
Millennium Bug and the fantastic
opportunity of volunteering at the Mr Stephen Higgs OAM
Sydney 2000 Olympics. But the turn of (JCH College Council since 2016)
the century – and turning 30 – made me For service to education.
think. I quit my job, booked a round-
the-world holiday, and landed back
in Melbourne just as the Twin Towers
came down in New York.

Fortunately, I got started again quickly
and worked in marketing for several
leading brands: Streets, PZ Cussons,
Birds Eye, Deeko, Holeproof and
Thins chips. I made ads, researched Dr Madeline Mitchell (2005) received
consumers, developed and launched well deserved recognition for her work
products, and worked extremely hard. in the field of synthetic biology.
In 2011, I was awarded the Australian
Marketing Institute top prize for
Marketing Program of the Year.
Thenu Herath (2016), Senior Student
In 2014 I took a step deeper into the in 2018, and exchange student in Paris
supply chain, and joined packaging firm in 2019, was privileged to meet Her
NCI, becoming General Manager for Majesty the Queen at a Buckingham
Marketing, R&D and Customer Service. Palace Garden Party. She had been
It was around this time that a friend honoured with an
was developing her own legacy, and it invitation from the
proved to be something dear to Australian High
my heart.
Commission.

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