BOARD CHAIR

Mary Gearin is an award-winning journalist of more than 30 years’ experience. As ABC News presenter across national and state TV and radio programmes, Europe Correspondent and National Sport Correspondent, she was the face of the national broadcaster for some of the biggest stories in the world and Australia, including terrorist attacks in Paris, the Europe migrant crisis and Victoria’s deadly 2019-20 bushfires. She has also held roles at Channels Nine and Ten, and worked across multiple platforms. Mary is also an accomplished MC and moderator. She has been recognised for her warmth and connection to audiences and her story-telling skills, whether reporting live breaking news, delivering in-depth analysis or facilitating conversations. Mary is turning her hand to other opportunities in the realms of arts, journalism, media strategy and social impact.

Agi Lesnicki is a qualified Chartered Accountant with 15 years of accounting experience across a number of service and retail businesses. She is currently the financial controller at Total Tools and has previously held senior finance roles at Healthscope, Sportsbet and GE Capital. Agi was previously on the board of Urban Myth Theatre of Youth in Adelaide. She joins Mountain Festival with a love for the Macedon ranges spending most weekends enjoying the area with her extended family.

Dr Billy Griffiths is a writer and historian who lives in the Macedon Ranges. He lectures in Cultural Heritage and Museum Studies at Deakin University and is a Senior Research Fellow at the Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation. His latest book, Deep Time Dreaming: Uncovering Ancient Australia (Black Inc., 2018), won the Ernest Scott Prize, the Felicia A. Holton Book Award, the John Mulvaney Book Award, the Douglas Stewart Prize for Non-Fiction and the 2019 Book of the Year at the NSW Premier’s Literary Awards.

Felicity Jacobson combines her legal acumen with a rich background in media and entertainment. Before transitioning into law, she held pivotal roles at the Weather Channel, XYZnetworks (now FOXTEL), and ABC Commercial. Felicity has nearly lived long enough in Macedon to be considered a local and is deeply committed to her community.

Macedon resident Kate Crawshaw is a learning designer, facilitator and founder of Serious Woo, a learning and development organisation that employs actors and arts-based techniques to improve workplace communication and innovation skills. Kate has a Bachelor of Arts, postgraduate qualifications in Public Relations, certifications in Experiential Learning and Visual Design. Kate is driven by building strong inclusive communities and loves a bush dance.

Sonia Orchard, is a freelance writer, creative writing teacher and an award-winning author of three books: a memoir Something More Wonderful, and the novels The Virtuoso and Into the Fire. She has a background in classical piano, environmental science and a PhD in creative writing. She is passionate about helping to promote the Macedon Ranges as a thriving community for the arts. Sonia lives in Macedon with her husband, three kids and many pets.