| Past Chairs | Mr Ian McRae AO
Ian was the inaugural Chair of AFTDA - at the time he was caring for his wife Gael. Initially a Chartered Accountant, he spent much of his working life in the performing arts, first at the Victorian Arts Centre during its construction, opening and early operation. He then moved to become General Manager of The Australian Ballet and subsequentially a member of numerous arts company Boards. |
| Past Board Members | |
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Helen James
Helen became a Director of AFTDA after her late husband, Gordon, was diagnosed with Semantic dementia, a variant of Frontotemporal dementia. She felt priviliged to be a member of the Board for approximately 7 years and became passionate and committed to educating and supporting carers and decision makers not only about the disease, but the far reaching impact on family, friends, and the community. Helen previously spent her career in the corporate environment and is now retired living in Sydney.
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| Elaine Black
Elaine was the secretary to the AFTDA board from February 2013 - 2018. Elaine is a retired nurse. Her husband Damian is a retired Radiologist and was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease in 1998 at the age of 48. Damian was subsequently diagnosed with an associated Frontemporal dementia in 2008. Elaine was a part of the initial focus group to discuss the possibility of a support group for the spouses of those diagnosed with FTD, initiated by Dr Tracey Wardill. As the support group expanded from its initial meetings at St George's Hospital and onto what was then Alzhiemer's Australia the FTD meetings transferred to Hawthorn. When the original Board of the AFTDA was formed Elaine became the first secretary to the initial board and held this position from the board's inception until she reluctantly resigned in 2018. |
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