I started at Bonnie Support Services as a Family Worker a few weeks ago so I’m new to this organisation. I’m not new to this work though. I have worked as a social worker with families in a range of services including Family and Community Services, Benevolent Society and Marist 180. I have worked with […]

While living in a multicultural area can be enriching and lively, it can also be isolating for many women. Language can often be a barrier to establishing new relationships and friendships. Here at Bonnie’s, we noticed that in our local area of Liverpool, women needed more supported opportunities to get together and get to know […]

For the past two years, on Tuesday mornings, the cozy and light-filled lounge room at Bonnie’s has been transformed into an art studio, where women have been coming together to create, connect and heal (not to mention talk, laugh and cry!). Our Creative Group is facilitated by myself and Ruth, from Rosebank Child Sexual Abuse […]

In my day-to-day work at Bonnies, it’s such a privilege to get to know people from all walks of life. Every day I am surprised by their stories, their life experiences, the way they think, their skills and talents. It’s so easy to make assumptions about people. We live in a world where we are […]

I’ve been working with families in crisis for about six years now, two of those at Bonnie’s. Basically, I work with our mums. When families first come to us, there’s always a lot to sort out. I’ll help with going to the police, getting Mum to family lawyers or supporting her with immigration. Mum is […]

I recently watched a TED Talk by an Australian woman called Khadija Gbla, who had her clitoris cut out with a rusty knife at the age of three. Khadija and her family were refugees, fleeing Sierra Leone. Her mother thought she was empowering her daughter by freeing her from sexual desire. Khadija’s talk, which she […]

A few years ago I wrote a blog post about my experience of being a caseworker again – even though it was only for a few hours. It was a powerful experience for me and I was struck by how easy it is to lose touch with the rawness of the work, when we’re in […]

Rob Porter, the White House aide who resigned last month, after he was publicly accused of abusing his two former wives, was an upwardly mobile Harvard-educated Rhodes scholar with a well-connected family, and a Mormon. It’s no wonder the allegations against him remained secret for so many years. Both women knew the impact these accusations […]

When I was 13, my friend and I wanted to shave our legs. Our mums said no. But all the other girls at our new high school were doing it. So I stole my mum’s Bic and we shaved them, at school, in an empty stairwell, dry. Over the next decade and a half, I […]

In December last year, as part of the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence, Bonnie’s held a candlelight vigil to remember the Australian women who lost their lives to domestic violence during 2017. There were 49 women by year’s end. This year, another nine women have lost their lives in less than two months. […]

The films below are based on real events… Many, perhaps most, of us have experienced sexual harassment. As part of the great lifting the lid on generations of silence and complicity, edited versions of these are now being screened on American TV as public service announcements. Watch them. But be warned, It’s uncomfortable viewing. For those […]

When I was in my mid-20s, I got a job as editor of a small newspaper. My boss was an overweight gay man with a wild temper. He always stood too close to me or leaned over me at my desk, so his stomach pushed against me. He would call me into his office and […]