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Who we are

Meet our dedicated team and board members at Northern Health Foundation who are caring for your community.     

Our Board Directors

Peter McWilliam

Board Chair

Mr Peter McWilliam brings with him extensive skills in business and management derived from 37 years of experience working at RBM and Paramount Plastic Extrusions, one of Australia’s largest privately owned plastic manufacturing companies. Peter served as General Manager and Company Director within the organisation and its subsidiary Paramount Plastics (Aust.) for 30 years. There, he was able to provide a strong leadership to inspire effective teamwork, planning and organisation. 

Peter understands the importance and value of staff in an organisation’s success, and has many years of experience in implementing training and mentoring programs to maintain organisational viability. He sat on the Australian Standards subcommittee on Building Facades and Glazings in the late 1980’s. Peter also initiated and implemented Australian and International Standards (ISO9001 and 9002) at Paramount Plastics (Aust.) from the mid-1990’s, successfully being audited and retaining accreditation for Paramount Plastics (Aust.) from then until his retirement.

As a resident of the northern suburbs, Mr McWilliam is familiar with its rapid growth and development and the community’s evolving needs. Since retiring in 2010, he is now focused on sharing his business acumen and skills to benefit health services in Melbourne’s north.

Trudi Hay

Deputy Chair

Trudi Hay is a Director of Greencor Group Pty Ltd as well as the Northern Health Foundation’s Community Events Committee Chair.

Trudi has a background in Marketing, Advertising and Events and has been mentioned in State and Federal Parliament for her work in Philanthropy in the Hume area.

Trudi has been a long time supporter of the Northern Hospital, specifically fundraising for Day Oncology for over 10 years.

Chris Turner

Chris Turner is the former Chief Executive Officer for Turosi, a fully integrated poultry operation producing a large range of raw, value enhanced and cooked poultry products, marketed under such brands as La Ionica, Golden Farms, Bannockburn Free Range.

Chris has a wealth of experience running large fully integrated poultry operations from milling/farming, processing, sales and marketing. He is also a past president of the Australian Chicken Meat Federation and the Victorian Chicken Meat Council. He is a current member of The Prime Safe Board and is currently serving his second year on the Northern Health Foundation Board.

Don Campbell

Professor Don Campbell is Medical Director Hospital Without Walls and Staying Well Program, Northern Health, Adjunct Professor of Medicine and Professor (Research) in the Faculty of Art Design and Architecture at Monash University and former President of the Adult Medicine Division of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians. Professor Campbell’s clinical and research interests are focused on creating the hospital without walls, and devoted to furthering the role of design and systems thinking in innovation in healthcare delivery. 

He is currently conducting a trial of intranasal heparin to reduce the risk of transmission of Covid-19 in households with the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute and partner health services, universities and research institutes.

Tricia Lee

Tricia Lee is Director at Riverlee, a privately owned, diversified property group that specialises in development and asset ownership across the commercial, residential and retail property sectors.

Tricia is also Executive Director of the Riverlee Foundation. Tricia holds a Bachelor of Commerce from Monash University and a Post Graduate Diploma in Applied Finance and Investment. She is passionate about making a difference and giving back to the community, hence her involvement in not-for-profits since 2008.

Koby Jones

Koby Jones is the Managing Director of The SILC Group, a specialised financial solutions provider focused on the unique needs of discerning wholesale private, commercial and institutional clients.

He is involved in all aspects of the company’s operations including general management, business development, client interaction, product selection, strategic initiatives, technology, governance, risk and compliance.

Koby holds numerous qualifications including a Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting, Commercial Law, Finance) through Deakin University and the Certified Practicing Accountants (CPA) Program.

Dominic Isola

Domenic Isola commenced his career in Local Government in 1996 following a career in institutional banking audit in a leading financial institution.  

He has expertise in financial management, reporting and audit, extensive management skills and experience in governance and risk and strong leadership and public sector experience.

Domenic commenced with Hume City Council in June 1999 and held the positions of Finance Manager and Director, City Governance and Information before being appointed to the role of Chief Executive Officer in August 2007, a position he held for 13 years.

He was previously a co-opted member of the former board of Dianella Community Health and Community Chef.  During that time, he was a member of the Finance and Audit committees and remains a member of DPV Health.

Domenic has led a number of local initiatives and dealt with a broad range of complex matters in the north and worked with a range of stakeholders including Government Ministers, community health organisations and Government agencies and maintains strong working relationships with community health organisations.

Domenic is a Board Director of Lower Murray Water and member of the Finance and Audit Committee.

Santosh Kaur

Santosh has extensive experience in healthcare as a doctor and nurse. Over the last 17 years, she has worked across various settings including hospitals and aged care. Santosh loves aged care as specialty and has worked in various senior management positions.

In her most recent role with the government regulator of aged care, she worked on investigating the clinical complaints. She is the Founder/CEO of SmartHeal, and joined the Board in 2025. 







Shannon Ryan

Shannon is an experienced engagement and partnerships leader with over 23 years of cross-sector experience spanning sport, higher education, and community development. He currently serves as Program Manager - Innovation & Entrepreneurship at La Trobe University, where he leads programs fostering startup creation, acceleration, industry collaboration, and the development of entrepreneurial capability across student, alumni, local community, and international networks.

His work includes supporting initiatives in Australia and India connecting education, and the startup ecosystem. He has led international projects, including a multi-stakeholder conference in Timor-Leste on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and a bioinnovation startup pre-accelerator (Ind-Aus LaunchPad Program) in India as part of his role with La Trobe.

Shannon has held senior roles at NORTH Link, Victoria University (VU), Basketball Australia, and served as President of Eastern Recreation & Leisure Services (ERLS), a regional body promoting inclusive sport and recreation opportunities for people with disability. An enthusiastic advocate for health equity and innovation, Shannon has lived with Type 1 Diabetes for 39 years.

John Molnar

John Molnar OAM has practiced law for over 30 years, and during that time, became heavily involved in the field of law relating to health service providers and hospitals. He has served on the boards of a number of public and private hospitals, including Northern Health and the Nurses Board of Victoria.

Mr Molnar was instrumental in the establishment of the Northern Health Foundation, and remains a passionate advocate of the Northern Health network, as well as the dedicated medical professionals who work within. Mr Molnar is able to recognise the need for additional funding so Northern Health can meet its commitment to the rapidly growing northern community, and establish itself as a major teaching and research centre.

Our Team

Pina Di Donato

Executive Director Public Affairs and Foundation

Pina joined the Foundation team in July 2021 after having served over 10 years on the Northern Health Foundation Board. Pina has a degree in Economics and Commerce from the University of Melbourne and is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.  

She has currently completed a Senior Executive Master of Business Administration at Melbourne Business School.

Pina was born and raised in the northern suburbs and has a strong connection to the community. She has worked in the local area for the past 30 years and has an impressive background in business, marketing, communications, and fundraising.

She is passionate about leading a highly motivated and compassionate team who are working to make a difference to the Northern Health community.

 

Margaret Rivette

Fundraising Campaigns Coordinator 

Margaret joined Northern Health in 2020, and transitioned over to Northern Health Foundation in 2021. Margaret has a passion for creativity, and utilises these skills through her direct marketing and campaigns, while collaborating with the team.

Margaret graduated from Swinburne University of Technology with a Media and Communication degree and holds a Cert III in Events Management. She enjoys giving back to the community she grew up in, and understands there is an ongoing need to support the families and patients that are cared for at Northern Health.

Tatjana Dimoska

Senior CRM and Database Coordinator

Tatjana joined the Foundation team in February 2023 and has been an invaluable asset since. She has extensive experience with administration and finance-based roles, having worked at the NAB for more than 16 years and with Northern Health for six years overall.

Tatjana is a dedicated individual who understands the value of collaboration and is immensly resourceful, making her a perfect fit within the fundraising sector and the Northern Health Foundation team.

Kim Berger

Community Engagement Coordinator

Kim brings a wealth of experience to her role as a Community Engagement Coordinator, boasting over 15 years of dedicated service with Northern Health and a remarkable 35-year tenure in similar administrative capacities. Her deep commitment to driving positive change is palpable, reflecting in her passion for community engagement.

In addition to her role as Community Engagment Coordinator, Kim serves as a dedicated Volunteer Coordinator. In this capacity, she adeptly manages a team of over 50 volunteers at Northern Health. Kim’s passion lies in encouraging those who may be socially isolated or marginalised to find empowerment through volunteering.

Our Patrons and Auxiliary

Bev Carman 
Patron

Bev Carman has been a patron of Northern Health and Northern Health Foundation for over 15 years.

Bev Carman is a long-standing Northern Health Foundation patron who wants to ensure all members of the northern community has access to cancer treatments locally.
When Bev’s daughter was diagonsed with cancer, at the time, Cancer Services was not yet established at Northern Hospital Epping.
Bev rallied her local networks, community members, local councillors and politicians along with the Northern Health medical workforce to lobby state and federal governments to rise to the cause.
Through her tireless efforts and incredible tenacity, Bev was responsible for securing the funding from Government to establish cancer services at Northern Hospital Epping.
Bev’s support and fundraising continues to leave an enduring legacy at Northern Health and within her community, and is still heavily involved in fundraising for Cancer Services. She also sits on our Community Event’s Committee as a valued member.

Her Northern Health Foundation Race Day and Oak’s Day events are popular on our annual events calendar.

She is a passionate advocate for Northern Health and the northern community.

Margie Hill
Patron

Margie Hill has been a Northern Health volunteer and staff member since 2020. 

Her volunteering roles at Northern Health include fundraising, administrative and concierge activities.

Most recently, Margie became a Northern Health Foundation Patron and she is extremely proud to be an advocate, supporter and Patron of the Foundation. 

When Bev’s daughter was diagonsed with cancer, at the time, Cancer Services was not yet established at Northern Hospital Epping.
Bev rallied her local networks, community members, local councillors and politicians along with the Northern Health medical workforce to lobby state and federal governments to rise to the cause.
Through her tireless efforts and incredible tenacity, Bev was responsible for securing the funding from Government to establish cancer services at Northern Hospital Epping.
Bev’s support and fundraising continues to leave an enduring legacy at Northern Health and within her community, and is still heavily involved in fundraising for Cancer Services. She also sits on our Community Event’s Committee as a valued member.

Her Northern Health Foundation Race Day and Oak’s Day events are popular on our annual events calendar.

She is a passionate advocate for Northern Health and the northern community.

Trudi Hay
Patron

Trudi Hay is the Deputy Chair on the Northern Health Foundation Board and Chair of our Community Events Committee.

Trudi has a background in Marketing, Advertising and Events and has been mentioned in State and Federal Parliament for her work in Philanthropy in the Hume area.
She has been a long time supporter of the Northern Hospital Epping, specifically fundraising for Day Oncology for over 10 years including helping to upgrade treatment chairs, privacy screens and scalp cooling machines for Northern Hospital Epping and Craigieburn Centre.
Josie Minniti OAM
Patron

Josie Minniti OAM has been fundraising for over 24 years supporting a number of Hospitals and Cancer Charities during that time.

Josie works within her local community to fundraise as cancer has affected many of her family and community members.
She organises a range of activities to bring the community together with the hope of raising funds to buy medical equipment to be used to improve the comfort of those suffering from cancer.
During this time Josie has raised over $700,000 through her events, raffles and auctions to support both Northern Hospital Epping and Austin Hospital Cancer Units.
Busy Fingers
Auxiliary 

Busy Fingers was founded in 1973 and since that time have been enthusiastic fundraisers and volunteers within the Northern Community.

Their first project was to raise funds to establish independent Aged Care services in the North, fast forward to 2019, they fundraise for the Northern Health Bundoora Centre who provide a range of aged care services and outreach programs to the local community.
The outreach program’s main aim is to provide care and support in the home enabling the elderly to remain in their own homes as long as possible. The Busy Fingers Shop was opened 25 years ago in the Foyer of Bundoora Centre and stocks a wide range of items including hand-made items and donated goods from members and the local community.
The Busy Fingers Shop has raised well over a million dollars since that time and is busier than ever. This dedicated group, led by their current President, Kerry Wall, has raised over $3,000,000 for aged care services and support since 1973 which is an amazing effort and an indication of their dedication to Bundoora and the aged care services that Northern Health provide to the local community.
We are grateful for the support of the Auxiliary in funding medical equipment for our aged care service. Each and every day they have a positive impact on patient care within the Centre and the Bundoora Centre and for that we will be forever grateful.
Northern Knitting Community
The Knitting Guild is a dedicated group of ladies who have been supporting Northern Health and the Foundation for over thirty years.
Bina Connelly, pictured,  is a former Northern Health employee who started at PANCH and that is where she began knitting in 1991 with one of the local volunteers.  When Bina moved to Northern Hospital Epping to work she continued to knit to support our patients to have a positive experience whilst in hospital.
Bina and the team of ladies from the Knitting Guild are using their talent to help the Northern Health Foundation. The items they make are sold at Northern Hospital Epping and in the Busy Fingers Shop at Bundoora Centre.  All the funds go to the Northern Health Foundation to help fund the purchase of medical equipment
Since the Knitting Guild was formed over thirty years ago they have raised more than $100,000 for medical equipment for Northern Health.
Salvation Army Whittlesea Craft Group
Auxiliary 
The Salvation Army Craft Group led by coordinator, Joan Matthews, are long term supporters of Northern Health and the Foundation.
The craft group come together to share in fellowship, connect with others and undertake craft projects to raise vital funds to support their local community, including special projects at Northern Hospital Epping.
The group has funded many projects at Northern Health over the years with their most recent projects including the purchase of Pepi-Pods, a safe sleep space for newborn babies, a children’s car to transport our youngest patients to theatre and  medical equipment for our Women’s and Children’s wards.