Presenting your 2020 Westfield Local Heroes

We are excited to announce your three 2020 successful Westfield Local Heroes for Plenty Valley.

These inspiring local leaders were nominated and voted for by the community and will now be awarded a $10,000 grant for each of their affiliated organisations to help their important work to grow.

Westfield Local Heroes is a community recognition and grants program, connecting and enriching local communities. Launched in 2018, the program spans our 42 trade areas across Australia and New Zealand. In 2020, we are awarding $1.26 million to 126 local organisations.

For further information on the Westfield Local Heroes program, click here.

Your three Westfield Plenty Valley Local Heroes are:

Deborah Henry

From Us 2 You
Smart. Kind. Selfless

Three nights a week, homeless people in Melbourne can look forward to a feast of prawns and steak, cooked with love by Deborah Henry and her dedicated volunteers. Deborah set up her social enterprise, From Us 2 You, nearly six years ago after her community services studies opened her eyes to the struggles people face. In addition to enjoying meals created from quality food rescued from supermarkets, it’s a chance for her clients to connect and have a conversation with each other and the volunteers. “They call me mum or street mum. I love it,” Deborah says.

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Josephine (Josie) Minniti OAM

Northern Health Foundation
Genuine. Committed. Heartfelt

Josie Minniti OAM is a dedicated and inspiring volunteer whose tireless efforts have helped raise over $700,000 to help patients with cancer or kidney disease at Northern Health’s four public hospitals. The funds have helped pay for medical equipment upgrades and for equipment that makes life more comfortable for patients undergoing cancer treatments. “This year, my target is to purchase equipment for the respiratory unit, to help patients suffering from lung cancer,” Josie says.

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Maddie Francis

NICU Cheer
Extraordinary. Compassionate. Inspirational

Maddie Francis knows firsthand how traumatising and isolating it feels to have a premature baby in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). She established NICU Cheer to provide gift bags to cheer parents up on Christmas Day after her son Ashton was born 10 weeks early. She works full-time securing donations for the beautifully presented bags. “Being in the NICU is traumatising, isolating and heartbreaking,” says Maddie. “We want parents to know they are not alone.”

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