Founders

Our endED House of Hope resides in Woombye, Sunshine Coast where we respectfully live, gather and work on Kabi Kabi and Jinibara land. 

We come by this space with

Parent/Carer Lived Experience. 

Our hope is to increase understanding, compassion and allyship. We dedicate our involvement to meeting individuals and their loved ones 'where they are at in the world' and move forward together.

We act as a voice of advocacy across adjunct services, actively participating in generating a discourse of progression in the continual development of our services. We would like to acknowledge that we both work on a full time voluntary basis. All support goes directly to expanding our offerings and supporting our wonderful team.

Senior Practitioner & Practice Coordinator

CCI Eating Disorder Recovery Coach

Laura comes to this role with Lived Experience. Laura completed her two year training through the Carolyn Costin Institute, attaining her qualification as a Recovery Coach.

Laura provides one/one support as part of individuals care team, providing person centered support and guidance in a myriad of ways through their journey of Recovery.

Laura is responsible for; co-facilitating our Community Connection Space, our Volunteer Connection Space, Intake & Assessment & is involved with Outreach & Engagement with the wider community.

Senior Practitioner & Practice Coordinator

Masters in Creative Arts Therapy: Community Arts & Health

Mental Health First Aid Accreditation [MHFA Australia]

Institute for Experiential & Creative Arts Therapy [MIECAT]

GradDip Senior Edu [QUT]

BA Creative Industries [USQ].

Registered Creative Arts Therapist (AThR)

Cass completed her Masters at the Melbourne Institute for Experiential and Creative Arts Therapy. Cass' prior work has been guided by social justice, advocacy, inclusivity, access and strengthening sense of belonging.

Cass comes by this space with Lived Experience and through her role seeks to provide support, guided and informed by the MIECAT Form of Inquiry & our guiding State and National Frameworks.

Cass is also responsible for co-facilitating our Community Connection Space, Intake & Assessment, Program development and is involved with Outreach & Engagement with the wider community.

Community Connect & Time For You Facilitator

Bachelor of Psychological Science

Sharnea completed her Honours in psychology at the University of Queensland and is currently studying a Master of Professional Psychology. Sharnea enters this space with a Lived Experience; guided by the NMHC Framework.

Sharnea’s approach is holistic, recovery-oriented, and community-focused. Sharnea is passionate about providing support to individuals navigating their recovery journey by inviting connection [to self, others and environment] through empathy, curiosity, and openness.

Sharnea is responsible for co-facilitating our Community Connection Space, and aspects of participant engagement.

Peer Support Facilitator & Volunteer Engagement

Han holds space for Volunteers to come connect and share in a way that is supportive for curiosity, exploration, growth and giving forward. Han holds a deeply grounded commitment to her own passion and curiosity in whole-self; within and without, landing in this delicate and safe space of endED with her own living experience to bring forward what she has been gifted in her own journey.

Han's personal motivations are moving towards the facilitation of change in the prevention space. Predominately across our education system. Han wishes to investigate and advocate for an integrated education that supports the prevention of separation and isolation from self and/or other. Han is a vivacious self-student and a passionate community threader of wellness.

LivED Experience Counsellor, Connection Group and Community Volunteer Engagement Facilitator

Bachelor of Applied Social Science (Counselling)

Diploma of Counselling and Communication

Georgie was first welcomed into the endED space in 2020 as a counselling placement student whilst completing her degree. She comes to this role from lived-experience and has previously cared for a family member with an eating disorder.

Her former roles have encompassed various support work, mentoring, and community development across the Sunshine Coast. Georgie was awarded a 'New Colombo Plan' scholarship in 2021 through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, offering an opportunity to represent Australia and promote mental health support across the Indo-Pacific region.

Georgie is one of our LivED Experience Counsellors and is also involved with our Volunteer Community and our Community Connection Space. Georgie hosts a warm, holistic & person-centred approach within an empathetic, non-judgemental and confidential space.

When not spending time at the lovely House of Hope, Georgie is either at the beach with her dog, chasing a sunset or exploring fusion restaurants around the Coast.

LivED Experience Counsellor, Time For You Facilitator, & Community Connect Facilitator

Diploma of Counselling

Bachelor of Psychological Science (Honours)

Leanne first connected with endED as a volunteer in early 2022 while completing her Diploma of Counselling and Honours year in psychology. Leanne is currently studying her Master of Counselling through the University of Canberra. She joins endED with lived experience.

Leanne’s former roles involved government work in Australia and overseas locations including India and Iraq. Some of these roles involved working with diverse individuals seeking humanitarian assistance in complex and personally challenging circumstances.

Leanne is also a member and bulletin editor for the Australian Centre for Quality of Life and a research assistant on long-term studies into eating disorders in Australia.

Leanne is one of our LivED Experience Counsellors and co-facilitates our Time For You and Community Connect offerings. She also coordinates our social media engagement. Leanne adopts a strengths-based, person-centred approach that recognises, honours, and encourages the value and uniqueness of each individual and their loved ones.

endED Patron

Claire is the founder of the Butterfly Foundation, and for many years was a Carolyn Costin Institute Certified Eating Disorder Recovery Coach, a Life Coach and an Internal Family Systems Therapy Practitioner.

Claire suffered from binge eating, bulimia and anorexia and was the carer for her two daughters who battled anorexia. Claire has been a dedicated passionate advocate for eating disorder treatment in Australia for many years.

In 2012, Claire received an Order of Australia Medal for her work with The Butterfly Foundation, as a significant agent for change in the way we prevent and treat eating disorders in Australia. 

She has a deep respect and admiration for endED and is incredibly proud to be an endED ambassador.

endED Patron

Federal Member for Fisher & Speaker of the House of Representatives

Andrew has been the Federal Member for Fisher since 2016, and currently serves as the 31st Speaker of the House of Representatives.

Prior to entering Parliament, he was a carpenter and joiner, a licensed builder and a small business owner, before retraining to become a construction barrister.

Andrew has advocated extensively for changes to policy and increased funding for mental health services since being elected, with a particular focus on eating disorder treatment. He has been a supporter of endED from the beginning and continues to champion the cause in and beyond Parliament.

endED Ambassador

The endED team are incredibly proud of our amazing ambassador Emily Seebohm who has triumphed over adversity to qualify for her fourth Olympic Games.

She is only the second Australian swimmer to have ever achieved this. Em, we want you to know that regardless of your amazing accolades you will always be a winner in our eyes.

Emily has shown immeasurable strength and tenacity in sharing her story and speaking her truth.

endED Ambassador

"I have had close friends with eating disorders. I have seen it through my work as a doctor in the emergency department. It is not an easy thing for anyone to go through.

What's more, eating disorders affect the people around those experiencing it. endED was founded through the passion and love of people so close to eating disorders.

For that reason, endED has a beating heart which truly has the potential to make an impact."

endED Ambassador

When my sister fell ill with Anorexia Nervosa, endEDs recovery coach, Millie Thomas, proved to be an invaluable resource. I wanted to give back, raise awareness and show compassion for the eating disorder community, so I organised a 24-hour row with a few friends. From this experience, I realised I wanted to help destigmatise and further understand eating disorders.

I’m an early career researcher at the InsideOut institute and an honours student at the Charles Perkins Centre. I study appetite hormones, in particular a new hormone called ‘Erusiolin’ which we believe suppresses appetite and may play a role in dysregulated eating. I’m investigating how our cells make Eursiolin, its final structure in the blood, which nutrients induce its section, and elucidate its role in health and disease. We research these hormones using blood plasma, and techniques in the field of proteomics, which is closely aligned with personalised medicine.

My passions include anything to do in or around the surf! I’m a member of the freshwater surf lifesaving club where I patrol, compete and pilot drones in the shark surveillance program. I also love reading, nonfiction and philosophy mostly but I am exploring more fiction.

endED Ambassador

Chelsea is passionate about sport especially football and plays professionally for Melbourne City and has represented Australia in the Young Matildas Team. Chelsea is very grateful to live her dream career especially growing up in a country town where playing professional soccer wasn’t a normal path to take. Chelsea has also become passionate in helping advocate for Eating Disorder Awareness as she is and continues to recover from her own lived experience with ED that she has carried through her adult life.

Chelsea is also determined to change the language surrounding EDs within her sport and to help take away the unnecessary shame, guilt and stigma so often attached to a person with an eating disorder.