Our Leadership
Mookai Rosie is only as good as the solid people who work here. Our team is made up overwhelmingly of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, so understand the needs of our clients and can provide a safe, friendly, and culturally responsive service.
Mookai Rosie’s professional staff include highly qualified clinicians who can make sure that you have the care and information you need to get healthy, stay healthy and give your baby the best possible start in life.
Our administrative workers, receptionists, great cooks, catering, and maintenance staff will make your visit friendly, comfortable and as stress-free as possible, and our friendly drivers will take you to your medical and other appointments and pick you up afterwards.
Meet Our Executive
Theresa Simpson
Chief Executive Officer
Theresa grew up in Cairns, with proud family connections to Cherbourg (Wakka Wakka) and Mount Isa (Kalkadon).
Raised by her strong and compassionate grandmother Bonnie Simpson as an only child, Theresa was consistently around her mother’s younger siblings and was often mistaken for one of them. Grandmother Bonnie was one of the original house mothers that had helped establish Mookai Rosie Bi-Bayan alongside founder Rose Richards. Her upbringing immersed Theresa in positive cultural and family values, shaping her into the family-orientated person she is today.
Theresa has worked at Mookai Rosie Bi-Bayan for nineteen years, continuing in her family’s footsteps with a passion for improving Women’s Health. She has extensive experience in both Government and private sectors, with expertise in business management and administration, human resources, finance, and leadership.
Theresa is determined to sustain and build on the legacy left by the women who built Mookai Rosie before her. This legacy encompasses both professional, evidence-based health care and accommodation services combined guided by strong and respectful cultural governance.
Nicole Dorante
Chairperson
Nichole Dorante is the granddaughter of both Rose Richards and Bonnie Simpson. These remarkable women, together with Nana Esme Hudson, sacrificed their pensions and wages to ensure clients got to their medical appointments.
There were no Government funds in those days so they bought medication and food, and provided transport. Supported by local leaders Grandad Clarrie Grogan and Uncle Mick Miller, the women fought hard to get funding. With this, they created one of the first Aboriginal-community-controlled organisations in far North Queensland.
Nichole says she feels as if the baton, and her grandmother’s fighting spirits, have been passed on to her. Now it’s her responsibility to keep Mookai Rosie heading in the right direction and to teach the younger generation as her Elders taught her.
“My Grandmother Rose would always ask ‘When you going to get on the Board?’. I would always reply ‘No, not me.” But here I am three years sitting on the Board at Mookai Rosie and thoroughly enjoying the experience. I am so proud to be a part of an organisation that I remember so well as a little girl.”
“There’s nothing else like Mookai. Its uniqueness is that it’s run and staffed by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women. When our own mob come here, they have a place to stay where they can feel safe and comfortable, a home away from home. No other service can give these ladies that and no one can do it better than us, ourselves!”
She wants to expand Mookai’s services to work with young men too. “They come as a family unit so we need to help build on their strengths as a family. The families will have goals that they might want to work towards and we can help them achieve those goals”.
Meet Our Managers
Janelle James
Health Program Manager
Janelle first came to Mookai Rosie after hearing from a local GP that Mookai was looking for a midwife. While the timing wasn’t right at that point, it was the start of a solid relationship. Since starting with Mookai on a research project in partnership with James Cook University, Janelle has worked in the role of registered midwife, Clinical Team Leader, and Clinical Governance Officer, giving her insight into the structure and development of Mookai Rosie’s health programs, growth and direction.
Janelle’s diverse skillset includes health informatics, tertiary education, research, project management and clinical practice across urban, regional, and remote locations. It was her time working in the Kimberley that gave her some insight into the rewards and complexities of working with Aboriginal families, and the inequities they face along their pregnancy journey. This insight grew to be a passion – equitable, proactive and community-driven solutions for the challenges faced by remote families.
“The opportunities Mookai Rosie provides make a difference. Every family we interact with has access to the care they need, with culturally responsive healthcare, informed decision-making, and self-determination at the heart of all our programs. It’s an honour to be part of Mookai’s forward journey.”
Walter Giuvarra
Quality and Compliance Program Manager
Profile coming soon.
John Robinson
Corporate, Business and Development Manager
Profile coming soon.
For Individuals
As a individual or a family we understand that it can often be too hard to hand over sums of money, but you can still support the important work we do at Mookai Rosie Bi-Bayan. Giving a gift or donating some of your skills is an awesome way to support what we do. One of the simplest ways to show your support is to share what we do across social media. Remember it takes more than one person to make change.
For Corporations
To tranform the lives of other sometimes it takes the helping hand of others. We rely on much of the budgets delivered to us from our Government funding bodies. But like all not-for-profits we want to be sustainable and this is where you can help. Through a simple donation or purchase of one our supporter gifts you become a part of the Mookai family and a part of the change.
