"It's a wonderful feeling knowing that I can, and do, contribute."
Kath, aged 76, has been a volunteer with St Vincent’s since 2016 after she and her husband returned to Queensland from Canberra after decades working in the Federal public service.
She volunteers for two shifts a week at St Vincent’s, both starting at 5.30am and says that her early career and training as a nurse makes her feel comfortable in a hospital environment and says “it’s a wonderful feeling knowing that I can, and do, contribute.”
But there’s another side to Kath’s volunteering and her ‘other life’ which hospital visitors would be completely oblivious to - the trailblazing international Men’s gymnastics judge and coach who’s had the ‘privilege’ of judging at two Commonwealth Games and international competitions in far-flung countries such as South Africa, Turkey, New Zealand, the United States and Canada.
Kath became involved with gymnastics when her two sons took up the sport and while she coached men’s gymnastics from 1977, she became more active in the judging side of men’s competition 38 years ago, even triggering a change in the international rules and becoming the first female international judge for men’s competition.
“It took me about 12 years to get the rules changed internationally and in 2001, I became the first female in the world to get my international judging accreditation to judge men’s gymnastics which was very satisfying,” she says.
“All of the judging and presenting judges courses and developing resources and education material are also done as a volunteer. So many hours have been given and while I have had many challenges, I’ve had so many opportunities to travel within Australia and overseas and judge at state, national and international competitions and being part of an amazing community and I am still involved with the sport today, recently judging at the National Championships which I’ve done for 35 years.”
