When I Was Young

No one in Coburg was gay in the 1980's - Patrick Bonello’s story of courage, resilience and finding connection

Patrick Bonello takes us to the 1970s and 80s, to the working-class suburb of Coburg, where his young self was destined to start his life’s journey as an identical twin. We venture through the ups and downs of childhood and into his passion for radio and all things gadgets. All the while, Patrick is learning that he must keep the secret that he is gay, to keep himself safe.  Come with us on this heady romp as we look at the politics of sexuality, the AIDS crisis and the prevalent homophobic views of the 80s, through the eyes of a young man who is trying to understand himself and find connection.

Christine Nixon: Portrait of a trail-blazing leader

New podcast out now featuring Christine Nixon. Join us as we have a chuckle talking about childhood northern beaches summers, fierce independence, love of swimming and Brownies, before we get into Christine’s most impressive, change-making career. Imagine the burly world of policing in NSW in 1972 when there were only 130 women in the police force, and 8,000 men. Now imagine being asked at a job interview if you planned to get married and have kids. What would a young, educated, feminist do with a workplace that wasn’t moving with the times? Come along as Christine shares the wild ride of her incredible leadership career with humour, humility and an uncommon openness. I have deep respect for this beautiful human!  Thanks to Leadership Victoria for connecting Christine and I, so we could share this delightful conversation with you.

Dan Stubbs is Victoria’s first Public Advocate with a declared disability. From blind skiing to his huge career in advocacy, Dan shares the story about losing his sight and creating a unique path towards his calling in life.

Dan shares the stories of his childhood, growing up in Melbourne’s northern suburb of Bundoora in the 1970s and 80s. Cricket and football in the street, boundless bike rides, the freedom he was given to roam and explore. At fourteen Dan loses his sight. His parents fight to keep him in mainstream education and with the help of a few great teachers and aides, he learns new ways of learning. He continued his mission through his late teens and twenties to ensure that he could experience as much of the world as his sighted peers, which led him to overseas travel, skiing, scuba diving, surfing and bushwalking. Dan talks openly of his journey, the challenges and supporters he has had through his long career in advocacy. Today Dan is the first Public Advocate in Victoria with an open disability, using all of his knowledge and life experience to support some of our most vulnerable people with disability.   This is a Memory Lane Life Stories [https://www.memorylanestories.com/] production with host Nina Fromhold.  Recorded at the Narrm Ngarrgu library in Melbourne, Australia.  Music licensed through PremiumBeat.  Design by Pass the Salt Studio [https://passthesalt.studio/]. Learn more about the podcast or recording your own life story: www.memorylanestories.com

Fiona Garrivan, celebrant and podcast host of Deadly Serious Conversations talks about death and dying with foresight and kindness.

Fiona shares the stories of her childhood, growing up in Northern Ireland during the civil war known as The Troubles. Her life was on a steady path of fitting into the expectations set out for Irish Catholic women in the 1980 and 90s, until she went to Uni in Dublin and met a lovely girl from Australia. This friendship opened up the possibilities of the world to Fiona, and with some action and courage on her part, she changed the trajectory of her life. Fiona now calls Melbourne home. She is a celebrant for funerals and weddings and has a podcast called Deadly Serious Conversations. Through her work, she noticed that people in Australia often aren’t talking about death, dying and legacy, and so may not know where to start when they lose a loved one. She has created a wonderful library of episodes that looks at all different aspects of death and dying with kindness, respect and compassion. Let’s find out how she got into the tender work of funerals. This is a Memory Lane Life Stories production with host Nina Fromhold.  Recorded at the Narrm Ngarrgu library in Melbourne, Australia.

Dr Kathryn Lomas on growing up in New Zealand, taking risks, being an entrepreneur and researching our natural world for answers to human problems

Kate is an innovative scientist who notices the systems in the natural world and applies this thinking to technology that supports people and communities. She is an entrepreneur with a med-tech start-up under her belt that achieved awards and grants for seven years, for technology advancement. During that time, her company raised more than $20 million in capital for technology development. Now Kate supports other Australian start-ups to find a pathway to the market. She talks with us about growing up in New Zealand, exploring the world in her twenties, taking risks, raising her sons and pursuing a life of research, knowledge and adventure. Kate says in the podcast, "Our greatest asset is our brain". Thank you Kate for inspiring us with your refreshing perspective on life. This is a Memory Lane Life Stories [https://www.memorylanestories.com/] production with host Nina Fromhold. Recorded at the Narrm Ngarrgu library in Melbourne, Australia. Music licensed through PremiumBeat. Design by Pass the Salt Studio [https://passthesalt.studio/].