People
Our patrons, board and council members have unparalleled experience and qualifications in business, finance, giving and philanthropy.
His Excellency, Mr Malcolm McCusker AC CVO QC, Governor of Western Australia - Patron
Malcolm James McCusker AO QC became the 31st Governor of Western Australia on July 1, 2011.He has a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Western Australia and is a Queen’s Counsel. Mr McCusker is well known for his successful representation of wrongfully convicted persons, in a number of high profile cases. Mr McCusker has received numerous awards and was made an Officer of the Order of Australia for his services to law and the community in 2005. He has received two WA Citizen of the Year Awards; the Civil Justice Award from the Australian Lawyer’s Alliance; Honorary Degrees from Murdoch University, the University of Western Australia and Edith Cowan University; and was WA Australian of the Year in 2011. He is Patron of more than 100 community organisations including the McCusker Foundation for Alzheimer’s Disease Research, Landcare and is Chairman of the McCusker Charitable Foundation, his family foundation, which distributes substantial funds each year to worthy charities.
Stan Perron AM - Vice-Patron
Mr Perron is Chariman of the privately owned Perron Group of Companies which is a Perth based diversified business incorporating investment in major commercial property, equities markets and automotive distributorship. Mr. Perron is also chairman of The Stan Perron Charitable Foundation which currently supports in excess of 100 charitable organizations with a bias towards children’s charities and medical research. Mr Perron was been awarded the Order of Australia, Master Entrepreneur of the Year 2001 and Citizen of the Year 2002. In 2010 Mr Perron was honoured for his philanthropy with the naming of the Perron Centre of the Association of the Blind of WA. Mr Perron was awarded the Sir Charles Court Inspiring Leaders Award at the Citizen of the Year Awards in May 2010.
Michael Chaney AO - Vice-Patron
Mr Chaney is Chairman of the National Australia Bank Limited, Woodside Petroleum Limited and Gresham Partners Holdings Limited. He is Chancellor of the University of Western Australia, a member of the JPMorgan International Council and a Director of the Centre for Independent Studies, and is Chair of the UWA Centre for Social Impact Advisory Council. As CEO of Wesfarmers, and now Chair of Woodside and NAB, Michael’s strong leadership of corporate giving is well known in WA.
Don Voelte - Vice-Patron
Mr Voelte has 36 years of experience in the global oil and gas industry, and was Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Woodside since joining the company in 2004. He was responsible for growing both the physical assets of the Company as well as profitability, prior to retiring from Woodside in June 2011. Don served on the Board of the University of Western Australia Business School and is a Non Executive Director of Seven West Media Limited. He earlier held Non Executive Director positions on Atlantic Richfield Chemical Company and Vastar Resources, Inc. He is a member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers, the American Society of Civil Engineers, the Chi Epsilon Honor Society, and a Foreign Fellow to ATSE (FTSE) and a Fellow to the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD). He is a trustee of the University of Nebraska Foundation and was awarded the University of Nebraska Engineering Alumni of the Year in 2002.
John Poynton AM Cit WA - Chair
John is Executive Chairman of Azure Capital Ltd, Deputy Chairman of Austal Limited, and a Non-Executive Director of Burswood Limited. He is Chair of the Council of Celebrate WA and a Member of Social Ventures Australia and the Curtin Foundation. John is a Member of the General Division of the Order of Australia, a past recipient of a WA Citizen of the Year Award in the Industry and Commerce category, and an honorary Doctor of Commerce from the University of Western Australia.
Michael Smith - Director
Michael is the Chairman of Synergy, iiNet, RC Sadliers and the Perth International Arts Festival. He is Vice-President of the Australian Institute of Company Directors in Western Australia, Deputy Chairman of Automotive Holdings Group, and a director of the 7-Eleven Stores Pty Ltd. Michael also runs Blackhouse, his own strategy development consulting firm. Previously, Michael was a director of Home Building Society, and Chairman of the West Coast Eagles, Pearling Industry Advisory Council, Scotch College and Barking Gecko Theatre Company.
Sally Burton - Director
Sally relocated from London to Perth in 2005, after being a regular visitor for some twenty years. Over time, Perth became a more attractive place to live, while London and the UK became less so. Sally is Patron of the Black Swan State Theatre Company and founder of Onward Production, a theatre production company. Sally has established the Sally Burton Award for third year actors at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, and the Richard Burton Award for new plays. Sally also supports the Art Gallery of Western Australia, the West Australian Symphony Orchestra and the West Australian Ballet.
David Stanley - Director
David is the State Relationship Manager for ANZ Trustees and has held various management positions across ANZ’s Private Banking and Retail divisions throughout Australia. David holds an MBA from the University of Adelaide Business School and has 14 years experience in banking and finance. In his current role, David helps clients to achieve their philanthropic aspirations by advising them on structures for charitable foundations, connecting them with ANZ Trustees' expertise in charitable giving and investing. David’s personal charitable interests are in the areas of Children, Education and the Indigenous Community.
Adrian Fini - Board Member
Adrian is a director of FJM Property Pty Ltd, a private property and investment group. He has been involved in the Perth property industry for over 25 years and is a non-executive board member of Little World Beverages Ltd. Adrian is on the boards of the Art Gallery of Western Australia and The University of Western Australia Business School, and is on the committee of the WA Chapter of the Australia Business Arts Foundation. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from The University of Western Australia.
David Flanagan - Board Member
David Flanagan, Managing Director of Atlas Iron, is a geologist with extensive experience in mining operations, exploration and project development in Western Australia, Indonesia and West Africa. Graduating in 1993, David joined Resource Service Group (RSG) in 1995 after working for Normandy at the Fimiston Open Pit Operations. Whilst with RSG he was seconded to Gencor's Bogosu operation as Chief Exploration Geologist and under his leadership the exploration team discovered and developed the Chujah deposits. Whilst at RSG David also worked in an auditing capacity, providing independent geological verification for financial institutions. In 1999 David joined Gindalbie Gold NL, holding the position of Exploration Manager from 2001.
Winner of the inaugural Governor’s Award for Giving, David is is passionate about corporate giving and leads the Atlas Iron team in their annual Classic Dash events, a combination of team building and community impact. In September 2011, over 200 Atlas staff and contractors descended on Port and South Hedland to contribute to a range of community projects in a one-day “blitz”, where volunteers from Atlas Iron joined with members of the community across 5 locations and 4 primary schools to deliver tangible outcomes for local residents and families.
Tonya McCusker - Board Member
Tonya is a trustee and administrator of the McCusker Charitable Foundation, which was established for charitable purposes aimed at improving the lives of Western Australians. Tonya has a law degree from The University of Western Australia, a postgraduate degree in management from Henley Management College (UK) and Fundraising Institute of Australia Certificate 1 qualifications. Tonya has danced with the Australian Ballet Company, worked in Hong Kong and was Business Development Manager with the Leeuwin Youth Development Foundation and the Fremantle Chamber of Commerce.
Holly Ransom - Board Member
Holly, by her own admission, is a social entrepreneur who believes in being the change she wants to see in the world. Alongside her Law and Economics degree at UWA, her passion for social impact has seen her take leadership roles across a variety of not‐for-profit organisations from Young UN Women Australia, the Red Cross, Teach for Australia and the Inspire Foundation. Holly’s work leading the establishment of a micro financing project was acknowledged with the project being made a 2011 semi‐finalist for the International Dell Social Innovation Awards.
Holly runs two businesses: a consulting and public speaking business and a leadership development company, Level Up Leadership. She is an opinion piece contributor with ‘The West Australian’ and features as a regular guest on Perth radio’s 6PR Morning program. A 2010 and 2011 Finalist for Young Western Australian Citizen of the Year, she also sits on the Board of Global Voices, the YMCA Perth and the Western Australian Government’s Women’s Advisory Council.
Marcus Tan - Board Member
A medical graduate from the University of Western Australia, with a Fellowship of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, Marcus has previously served as a Medical Director for Molescan, now part of the Healthscope group. Marcus co-founded Equis Consulting Group and is currently the Managing Partner for Future Health Ventures, a seed accelerator fund which actively invests in Health Technology Start-ups. Marcus is also a member of the WA Angel Investor Association and the WA chapter lead for Aurelius Digital.
A Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, Marcus is currently the Chairman of the Perth Primary Care Network (PPCN), one of the leading Divisions of General Practice in Australia (and future Medicare Local), and is the Finance Director for the West Australian General Practice Network (WAGPN), the state peak body for WA Divisions of General Practice. Marcus is also an adjunct associate professor of Health Leadership at Curtin University. Marcus is a strong believer in giving back and is a co-founder and director of Meridian Global Foundation, a professional philanthropic group and charitable trust.
Jan Stewart - Councillor
Since 1992, Jan Stewart has been CEO of Lotterywest, an organisation that in 2010 raised more than $234 million for the community of Western Australia and makes a significant difference to the quality of life of all Western Australians. Jan has held office in many community organisations. She has been Chair of the Lady Gowrie Child Care Centre, and was on the board of West Coast TAFE for 10 years. Jan became the inaugural President of the Asia Pacific Lottery Association in 1999, Vice President of the World Lottery Association in 2005, and Senior Vice President in 2008. Jan received a Public Service Medal in the 2009 Australia Day Honours. Jan is a member of the board of Hale School and is the Western Australian representative on the National Save the Children Fund board. She is also on the advisory boards of the Centre for Social Impact and the Faculty of Arts at The University of Western Australia.
Jacquie Thomson - Councillor
Jacquie is the General Manager of Grants and Community Development at Lotterywest where she leads a team of grant makers who provide over $114 million dollars annually to Western Australian charities, community groups and local government authorities. Jacquie is board member of Workpower, an organisation that supports people with disabilities. She holds a Bachelor of Social Science with a politics and sociology major from the Western Australian Institute of Technology, a Graduate Certificate in Management from Deakin University and has worked in community development for over 25 years.
Kevin MacDonald - Chief Executive Officer
Kevin MacDonald decided to come back to Western Australia for personal family reasons after a 15-year corporate career in Sydney. Before returning to Perth and accepting the Giving West role, Kevin helped create and run the Community Council for Australia (CCA), an independent, non-partisan, member-based advocacy and education organisation. Previously, Kevin had nine years with the NSW Business Chamber (formerly Australia Business Limited), which is the equivalent of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Western Australia. In his last three years he was CEO, and was responsible for implementing a new Strategic and Financial Plan and helping businesses compete and succeed. Kevin’s passion for charitable and community causes stems from personal experience of dealing with hardship, aged care, dementia, diabetes and heart disease in a close-knit family.
