Roma Wood, OAM, Ass Dip Ed, BA Ed - Co-ordinator of Teachers; Teacher, Bondi Junction, City and Pennant Hills Classes; Management Committee

Alice Russell - Teacher, Fairfield, Liverpool and Parramatta Classes

Alice was first associated with Better Hearing Australia in the early 1980s when her mother’s hearing impairment needed the help of BHA sessions and Alice attended to support her and coach her in her homework. Then they were mainly referred to as lip-reading classes, but are now expanded to cover the full range of hearing loss management techniques.

Very soon Alice was co-opted to do the Teachers’ Training Course which she successfully completed, so, in 1983 she was able to commence sessions in Fairfield, Liverpool and the surrounding districts. Her enterprise led to her arranging the accommodation for these sessions and she also realised that the organisation, though staffed principally by volunteers, needed fund-raising programs to cover its inevitable expenses. So, with some dedicated supporters making hand crafted items and selling them in street stalls, she has raised thousands of dollars for BHA.

When she first became involved, it was the Parramatta Branch, but since 2002 this has been amalgamated with Sydney. Her classes cover a large area of south-west Sydney.

At the 2009 Volunteers' Lunch, she was delighted to receive an appreciation award for her long service and dedicated fund-raising.

Sunny Stuart - Teacher, Hurstville Class

Sunny suffered gradual loss of hearing from early adulthood and was fitted with hearing aids in the late 1980s. In 2001, she heard of Better Hearing Australia and joined a local hearing loss management class to interact with other people facing similar issues.

During 2002 Sunny completed the required training to become a tutor and since 2003 has been leading her class as they support and encourage each other in living in the “real world” with a hearing loss. In 2005 she featured in the Hurstville Council’s annual Community Service Awards in acknowledgement of her contribution to the hearing impaired of that community.

Margaret Dengate - Teacher

Margaret is one of our few teachers who is not hearing impaired. In her early life she lived in Kogarah Bay, attending Carlton South and Blakehurst High schools. She qualified at Sydney University in Arts and Education, the latter covering languages and Mathematics. Her first teaching appointment was at Leichhardt Girls' Junior High. After spending six months in Europe, she worked in a primary school as an ESL teacher (English as a Second Language).

After marrying her husband, Doug, they lived in Concord for three years before settling in Frenchs Forest where they have been ever since. She left teaching once the family started and, in the many years since then, she has been involved in a variety of voluntary work including helping people with their shopping and teaching French to seniors. After joining BHA in 2006, she completed the Teachers’ Training Course and has already conducted several short courses on Hearing Loss Management.

Her hobbies include reading, cryptic crosswords and tennis.

Jill Hodgson - Teacher, Grenfell Class

Jill's background is science and agriculture teaching and farming, now retired.

She has worn hearing aids for 48 years and has had a cochlear implant for 3 years.

She managed to complete her BHA tutor's course in 2008 despite exhausting health problems.

Mary Silk - Teacher, Chatswood and Concord Classes; President

Sue Daw - Teacher, Canberra Classes; Convenor, Canberra Group

Pat King - Teacher, Chatswood Class

Marika Hetenyi - Teacher, Canberra Classes

Adele Gallagher - Teacher, Batemans Bay Class; Convenor, Batemans Bay Group

Beryl Winch - Teacher, Batemans Bay Class; Convenor, Batemans Bay Group