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Dee Brock has worked tirelessly to give back to her community through project management, and it is dear to her heart to that we remain committed to providing access to education for those in developing nations.
Who is Dee Brock? What do you stand for?
On the professional side, I've been a Project Manager for over 10 years on various community and government projects - from community-level projects to large and complex projects.
What I stand for, and the reason I'm involved with The LBW Trust, is that my parents migrated to Australia over 35 years ago now from Sri Lanka, in search of a better life for their future family. I'm so lucky to get the opportunities I did here in Australia for free through the public school system.
You only have to look at my cousins back in Sri Lanka to know it's a hard slog. Whereas here in Australia, for the most part, it's merit-based and even if you don’t have a high academic ranking everyone has the opportunity to at least get a basic level of education. That's why I'm involved with The LBW Trust, to make sure that those in developing countries get the same opportunities that we sometimes take for granted here in Australia.
"[My cousins] can go back to the communities that my parents grew up in and can give so much back that our parents just didn't have access to."
Why is allowing others to learn important to you?
For me, it goes back to the whole premise of what the LBW Trust is all about - levelling the global playing field in education. I think that even if you have a basic level of education, it just opens up so many more doors and more career paths. I've travelled a fair bit through Asia and you can see what that basic level of education can do for a family and community.
Even within my own family, you can see from my parent’s generation to my generation, the career options that are now open and available to us. Our parents had limited schooling, like my dad, who left in Year 10, but some of my cousins are now engineers, nurses, and school teachers. They can go back to the communities that my parents grew up in and give so much back that our parents just didn't have access to. They can inspire the next generation of our family. Education opens up so many doors, and I think everyone should have that right.
Did your parents teach you the value of education?
It's one of the reasons why my parents came to Australia in the first place so that their family could have access to those things that they didn't have growing up. My dad had to leave school at 16 so he could get a job to support his family. When I think of myself at 16 I just cannot imagine having to do that. My mum was able to finish school up to Year 12, but because my grandfather was aligned with the wrong political party at the time it meant that tertiary opportunities just weren't there for her.
Unfortunately at the time, if your parents chose the wrong political party to follow [in Sri Lanka] you were put further down in the queue on university waiting lists. The cost alone also made it difficult for many to further their education as well.
Education was always very important growing up. It wasn't that [my parents] pressured us to be doctors or engineers. All they asked was that we had a basic level of education. I was really lucky because not all parents are like that. We did our best, my siblings and I finished Year 12 and we all went on to study at university.
Who was your favourite teacher?
I had a few in high school, I was really lucky like that. I had a really fun Modern History teacher when I was in Years 10-12. He made learning so interesting. It was also the way he taught, he had time for everyone. Because I loved history he'd lend me books on other topics that weren't taught in class, for example, Malcolm X and Martin Luther King.
"I'm taking that knowledge to work... where I give back to the community. I take that education and contribute to the LBW Trust."
What are you most proud of having achieved?
I think finishing school, going to university and doing well in my career is something I'm most proud of because my parents sacrificed a lot. So being able to give back to them in that regard, it's a big achievement and that's probably what I'm most proud of. I'm taking that knowledge to work in the project space that I do, where I give back to the community. I take that education and contribute to The LBW Trust.
I've now got an 18-month-old son, and I like to think that my husband and I can instil the love of learning in him, as our parents did with us, and one day explain to him his grandparent's sacrifices for their future family. He already loves books. The minute you start reading a book he'll drop whatever he's doing to come and sit with you and listen - it’s gorgeous!
Do you have a favourite event in the LBW Trust calendar?
National Backyard Cricket’s up there now, because it's an event that's very inclusive for families and the community, and it's not expensive. It’s an event that you can host in your backyard, or you can go to a park. You know, it's adaptable and it’s becoming a favourite event of mine.
Thanks for your time, Dee!
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With heartfelt thanks,
The LBW Trust