2025 Finalists - Victoria RESCA

Paid Employee

Michael Jacobs, Acting Team Manager at Yarram Branch, has served Ambulance Victoria for fifteen years while also volunteering with the CFA. During his time at Mallacoota, he helped restore dermatology services by facilitating access to the Victorian Virtual Emergency Department and established inter-agency training days with AV, SES, Coast Guard, Victoria Police and CFA. As an active AV Peer, Michael is committed to staff welfare, supporting colleagues through challenging times. He also assists Ambulance Community Officer recruitment and training across Yarram and Foster, delivers community CPR and stroke education, and has coordinated Men’s Health Week and ESF Mental Health Matters workshops for emergency services personnel and families.

Paid Employee/Volunteer

Forty years of frontline dedication define Glenn Mercer's extraordinary service career. A CFA volunteer since 1985, he is currently 2nd Lieutenant, Training Officer, Community Safety Coordinator and Peer Support member at Milawa CFA, whilst also serving as a paid VICSES Community Resilience Coordinator. Glenn has mentored generations of young volunteers, developed state-level training resources, and provided extended community recovery support following major fire events. Glenn is also involved with Scouts Australia, has served on three school councils, championed the CFA Schools Gateways program, was pivotal in establishing a youth suicide prevention initiative in Boort, and is the Child Safety and Inclusion officer at the Wangaratta Hockey Club.

Paid Employee

Sergeant Brendan Vann has served his community for thirty years first joining the CFA as a sixteen-year-old volunteer and later bringing nineteen years of leadership to Victoria Police as both a frontline sergeant and Municipal Emergency Response Coordinator. During the February 2024 Bayindeen bushfire, which burned more than 17,000 hectares, he fought alongside CFA crews, managed the evacuation centre, opened his own home to displaced families, and returned post-fire to help farmers repair fences and care for livestock. He also runs Blue Light school programs, organises youth camps, volunteers with the Ballarat Soup Bus, and manages the Beaufort Blue Light Motorcycle Club

Paid Employee

Vanessa Keenan brings rare depth of experience to her role as Recovery Coordinator – Victorian Bushfires at Australian Red Cross. She is both a professional emergency management practitioner and a Black Summer bushfire survivor. She developed Red Cross's first Appeals and Emergency Events Fundraising Appeals playbook, supported the establishment of the Victorian Emergency Relief Fund, and in the wake of the Porepunkah tragedy personally preserved floral tributes for the families of fallen police officers. She also responded to the Bondi attacks. Beyond her professional role, Vanessa developed Arbour Festival, a nationally recognised creative recovery initiative, and serves her regional community as chair of Eastern Riverina Arts

Volunteer in any capacity (unpaid member)

Judith Hanlon has consistently given of herself to the communities of Shepparton and beyond. A volunteer Red Cross Team Convenor for nine years, she facilitates deployments, attends Council Emergency planning meetings, delivered food to families isolated during COVID, and presents Pillowcase and Emergency Redi preparedness workshops. Her broader volunteering is significant: 10 years volunteer manager of the Euroa Community Cinema, founder of U3A Euroa, four years community food stall raising funds for the homeless, a reader on Vision Australia Radio, board member of both Kiwanis and the Shepparton Museum plus numerous other community commitments. Judi simply shows up, wherever she is needed.

Volunteer in any capacity (unpaid member)

Since joining the Victoria SES in 2012, Mark Daw has responded to more than 3,000 requests for assistance, including complex technical rescues in remote and hazardous coastal terrain. As Sorrento Unit Controller since 2019, he led a ten-day multi-agency response to the January 2025 McCrae Landslip contributing approximately 160 volunteer hours while maintaining calm, transparent communication with distressed residents. An accredited Road Crash Rescue member, he also trains other responders and annually coordinates the Teenagers Road Accident Group safety program for more than 3,000 school students. His summer foreshore patrols along the Rosebud camping corridor have become a trusted community institution.

Paid Employee

Through fourteen years at Life Saving Victoria, Sheila Langley has shaped the development of countless volunteers, youth members and emerging leaders across Victoria. As Specialist in Member Development, she coordinates state-wide leadership and training programs, led the inaugural Leader Debrief Workshop in 2025, and has strengthened the Building Leaders Scholarship including contributions to international water safety engagement. Sheila champions inclusion through Pride in Lifesaving and statewide Pride Patrols, work that contributed to LSV achieving Bronze Tier at the 2026 Australian Pride in Sport Awards. Her steady, generous commitment often given well beyond work hours supports the people who keep communities safe every day.

Volunteer in any capacity (unpaid member)

Wayne Cartwright's commitment to lifesaving spans nearly four decades, beginning with his Bronze Medallion in 1987 and continuing today through more than 3,500 volunteer hours with Life Saving Victoria's Westpac Lifesaver Rescue Helicopter Service. As Chief Crewman, he coordinates crew rosters, training, operational compliance and documentation for a critical statewide aerial rescue capability. Beyond his rostered duties, Wayne regularly contributes unpaid time to maintain audit readiness and resolve crew safety issues, mentoring fellow volunteers with

quiet consistency. His reliability, depth of experience and genuine care for others have made him a cornerstone of the helicopter service and a model of sustained Service Above Self.

Volunteer in any capacity (unpaid member)

Thirty-seven years of service make Bruce Wilde one of St John Ambulance Victoria's most enduring contributors. As Manager of the Banyule Division and a practising First Responder, he has rebuilt the division from the ground up following the COVID-19 pandemic, consistently logging more than double the expected volunteer hours with multiple years exceeding 300 hours. In January 2026, he volunteered for a week in Corryong supporting communities during devastating bushfires. An ambulance paramedic and accredited St John trainer, Bruce also serves with the Royal Australian Air Force Reserve. His leadership, mentorship and tireless dedication continue to inspire all who serve alongside him.

Volunteer in any capacity (unpaid member)

Jennifer McGuirk's life of service spans fifty-four years, from 1972 teaching English to migrants to staffing the VCC EM Emergency Operations Centre today. The recipient of an OAM and a National Emergency Medal for her deployment to the 2019–20 Mallacoota fires, Jenny is also an Ambulance Victoria Volunteer Chaplain who ministers to both paramedics and retired paramedics including conducting funeral services at no cost. At Christmas she bakes scones and muffins for the paramedics she serves. In 1976 she began Bundoora Community Care and the Contact Community Centre which this year celebrates 50 years run by volunteers.

Paid Employee

Marie van der Weert's commitment to service spans more than five decades, from her first volunteer shifts with the Royal Life Saving Society in 1967 to her current role leading training and education for VCC Emergencies Ministry. Over sixteen years with VCC EM, she has expanded the Introduction to Personal Support program from a handful of sessions to approximately twenty-five annually, established the organisation's first Training and Education Advisory Committee, and created two new training packages. Deployed across countless major incidents including the 2022 floods, Black Summer bushfires and the 2017 Bourke Street tragedy Marie was awarded the National Emergency Medal in 2022.

Volunteer in any capacity (unpaid member)

For seventeen years, Kylee Donkers has provided an around-the-clock emergency response to Victoria's injured and displaced wildlife through Dutch Thunder Wildlife Rescue and Shelter, the organisation she founded. After the 2026 Yarroweyah fires, she extended her response for months attending callouts across a wide area, organising food and supply drops to Ruffy, and co-leading a domestic animal appeal with Shepparton Animal Rescue and Rehoming to support families caring for displaced pets and livestock. She delivers wildlife education to schools and community groups, provides specialist training to emergency services agencies, and collaborates daily with Wildlife Victoria, SES, CFA and police, a true community partner in every emergency.