Sue’s vision for a better tomorrow

A lifetime of giving back

“In a perfect world, there would be no poverty…”

Sue is 79 years old and has been giving to Mission Australia for 30 years. She knows she may not see an end to poverty, homelessness or family violence in her lifetime. But she’s chosen to include Mission Australia in her Will to help create a better world for the next generation.

From Calcutta to Zambia

“I was born in Calcutta, India. My father was in the military and so I travelled a lot as a child because of my father's work. After I finished school, I volunteered in Zambia for a year.

I was definitely a product of my English class structure. I was well-educated and privileged. I felt a duty to ‘give back’. The mantra was always, ‘Start with what the community says it needs’.”

Breaking barriers

“After I graduated university, I worked for the Australian foreign service. It was a male-dominated workplace and my colleagues did not welcome the ideas of women. They expected we would marry and then have to resign. When I was working in Sydney, I would see people sleeping on the steps. It bothered me greatly.”

“I had just returned from aid work in Bangladesh and thought, ‘This is going on around me at home, in my own country, and I don’t think I can do anything about it’. I could see Mission Australia nearby. They were providing food and shelter to people who needed it. That’s when I realised I could help.”

Creating the world we want

“In a perfect world, no one would face poverty or homelessness. Every child and young person would feel supported, and everyone would have the opportunity to work, grow and be valued. It would be quite nice, wouldn’t it?

That’s why I decided to leave a gift to Mission Australia in my Will. To help build that world.”

A legacy of hope

“I don’t have any children, but my siblings know about my choice. I thought hard about how to leave something to them, and leave something to a charity. It’s not a case of having to choose. You can do both.”