Brooke Massender: Giving back to her adopted country
By Margaret Carter
Brooke Massender is a very special person. During my interview with her, I was struck not only by how articulate and generous she was but also by her innate sense of gratitude towards her adopted country of Australia.
Brooke grew up in a small town in the north of England. She played alongside other kids who never managed to leave the town or a life coloured by poverty and a lack of opportunity.
However, Brooke was different. Clearly she was not only academically gifted but also was willing to take risks. She had an inner spark that prompted her to reach out and complete a law degree and then leave behind a predictable and lucrative life to move to Australia – a long way from family and friends.
Since moving to the other end of the world, Brooke has felt indebted to her new country. She believes that she is incredibly fortunate to be an Australian citizen. She has wanted to give back to the society which she sees as professional and yet easygoing, warm and welcoming. Brooke said that she felt that she could do this best through volunteering and pro bono work opportunities that she could source via her firm Freehills.
What sets Brooke apart from others is her enthusiasm and work ethic and, most importantly, her leadership and strategic skills. She is able to address not only current needs but is able also to look to the future and encourage others to participate in order to create long-term positive programs with measurable outcomes.
To publically recognise Brooke's committment and passion for volunteering, Annette Bain, Pro Bono Counsel and Executive Director of the Freehills Foundation, nomintated her for The Centre for Volunteering's 2008 NSW Corporate Volunteer of the Year Award.
Below I interview Brooke's nominator Annette Bain, Pro Bono Counsel and Executive Director of the Freehills Foundation, why she nominated Brooke. I also talked to Brooke about how volunteering has become part of her life and her career.
Annette Bain: Pro Bono Counsel, Freehills, and Executive Director, Freehills Foundation
When did you first notice that Brooke was different and that she was a person worthy of nomination?
I can't remember a point in time but I realised that she was somebody who you would see appear whenever there were requests to participate in a volunteering activity. She permeated every aspect of the volunteering program.
What is special about Brooke?
She always gives 150% and you can see that in everything she does – her professional life, her sporting activities, her volunteering and her pro bono work.
Brooke is highly sought after for her litigation skills and this should make it incredibly difficult for her to take on the amount of additional volunteering work that she has undertaken. It hasn't. She has a terrific ability to prioritise, and volunteering is one of her priorities.
Brooke has also made the enormous step of moving to a new country on her own and this has been challenging for her. Finding her feet, developing new friendships and really trying to understand the Australian culture on top of her volunteering and professional commitments are testament to the amount of energy that she has.
Brooke is a "people person" and cares. Before going on full-time secondment to our Shopfront Youth Legal Centre in Darlinghurst she mentioned to me that the kids there might find her accent a bit funny and that concerned her. Clearly it was not an issue for the teenagers who could see she is the real deal – providing best possible legal assistance for them. Overall, what stands out about Brooke are her leadership skills. She doesn't just do what is required at the time but she also spends time focusing on the long term impact. Her volunteering is skilled volunteering.
What do you mean by her leadership and strategic skills?
Brooke is a leader who attracts other people to get on board. For example she has taken charge of a legal clinic in-house for claimants to the Aboriginal Trust Fund Repayment Scheme In this role she takes on individual matters and then writes materials and resources for wider application. These resources are used by other legal firms and she is now developing precedents to be used interstate. Her impact is far-reaching. We are very fortunate to have Brooke on our team.
Brooke Massender: Senior Associate, Freehills
Tell me a little about your background and your decision to become involved in volunteering?
I grew up in a small town in the north of England. It was a place where there wasn't a lot of opportunity. I could see that a lot of kids didn't really have expectations for their future. They were bored and became involved with drugs and crime. It happened so easily and I believe that, had the right people been around, it could have been prevented. It wouldn't have taken much.
The kids that I help through Freehills Foundation are like the kids I grew up with. I really believe that we can make a difference. I have been very fortunate. I am one of the lucky people. I believe that with privilege comes responsibility. I think that the more people get involved, the more that a spirit of positivity is grown. I can see that there is often a break point, a chance to turn things around. I know that a small amount of effort by a lot of people can go a long way.
I also wanted to make a contribution to the Australian community to which I felt indebted. I saw volunteering as a way to honour that decision. When I first started at Freehills, I decided to make an automatic contribution from my salary to the United Way programme.
With time, I attended seminars held by United Way. I started to see that, by becoming more involved personally, I would be able to make a difference to people's lives. It was very motivating, very fulfilling.
What volunteering work have you done and what have the time commitments been?
On average, my volunteering work requires a couple of hours a week on top of my usual work commitments. There are also the monthly committee meetings and events or camps held for our pro bono and volunteer clients.
Once of the most significant volunteering events was a camp I ran for disadvantaged children at Vision Valley. It gave these children an opportunity to do things like rock climbing and abseilng that they normally wouldn't have access to.
In 2006, I spent six months at the Shopfront Youth Legal Centre, run by Freehills in partnership with The Salvation Army and Mission Australia. The Shopfront is a free legal service for disadvantaged young people who are typically under 25, homeless and/or drug or alcohol affected and/or dealing with mental illness.
When I came back to Freehills after my secondment, I decided to establish a pro bono programme where by staff members could assist Shopfront clients with victims compensation claims.
In what ways has volunteering helped you?
My pro bono and volunteering experience has given me the opportunity to meet and get to know a wide range of people from all aspects of our community. I have also been able to build my professional confidence through opportunities to liaise with police, prosecutors, youth workers, health care professionals and rehabilitation service to ensure holistic client care.
I have gained excellent advocacy experience through daily court appearances in the Local Court and District Court for criminal matters.
I have also been able to develop leadership skills via the coordination of volunteering opportunities.
My volunteering and pro bono experience has meant that I was offered a full time secondment to the role of Community Program Manager, Freehills Foundation. In this role I am responsible for managing a diverse range of community activities and I work with the Executive Director and the Freehills Foundation Board on the strategic direction of the program. It is an exciting and rewarding opportunity.
Most importantly, there is the personal satisfaction that I feel when helping people less fortunate than me. I believe in working towards a fair society and, to that end, I feel this work addresses one of my most important values which is the striving towards social justice.
The Centre
for Volunteering [ABN 28 002 416 024]
Level 2, 228 Pitt Street, Sydney NSW 2000
T: 02 9261 3600 | F: 02 9261 4033 | E: info@volunteering.com.au | www.volunteering.com.au