Gerrie never set out to be a caregiver or to champion better ageing for older adults and their family members. But after nearly a decade in journalism, she realised that’s how her life had set her up; through her love for writing, she got to know all sorts of people including elders and caregivers and it baffled her that a group of folks so diverse and dynamic could be seen as a mere homogenous mass of ‘over 65-vers'. More mystical was how Aunty Mary could go from multi-hyphenate matriarch of 10 children one day to ‘that old lady with the feeding tube’ the next.

 

If people don’t change overnight, what does?

 

So Gerrie set out to find the answers – from activity centres to hospices – and the more she learnt, the more she found the need to transform ageing if we want to grow older the way we prefer. 

 

Now she’s all about bringing that sense of curiosity to the intersection of health and social care to better support elders and families in transition And she’s excited to work with those who dare to imagine a brighter future for us all.