New Distinguished Service Award Winners join BEING’s “Hall of Fame”
BEING chair Tim Heffernan and CEO Giancarlo de Vera were honoured to present three Distinguished Service Awards at BEING’s AGM on 6 November last week.
Approved by the BEING board, the three recipients for 2025 are Douglas Holmes OAM and Fay Jackson, as well as a posthumous award made to Allison Kokany which was accepted by her daughter Rebecca. It was touching and inspirational for both the winners and the audience to reflect on the need and the power of personal advocacy in promoting the advancement of mental health consumer rights.
The following citations provide clear explanation for why Douglas, Fay and Allison are such worthy winners.
Congratulations!
[L-R Douglas Holmes OAM, Fay Jackson, Rebecca Kokany, Giancarlo de Vera (BEING CEO) and Tim Heffernan (BEING Chair)]
Douglas Holmes OAM EBE
For over 30 years, Douglas has devoted himself wholeheartedly to bringing the needs of mental health consumers to the attention of government and NSW Health serving on committees and boards of numerous mental health organisations at both state and national level including as an executive officer with BEING.
Douglas was a founding member of the Australian Mental Health Consumer Network and worked as a peer worker for over 10 years at St Vincent’s Sydney helping to establish the Hearing Voices Network NSW.
Douglas was instrumental in promoting and creating the Cert IV in Peer Work, a foundational mental health sector qualification.
In 2014 Douglas was awarded the TheMHS Exceptional Contribution Award and in 2018 the Order of Australia Medal for his contribution to the mental health sector.
Fay Jackson
BCVA, Dip.Ed., AECD, EBE
Fay is the Founder of Vision In Mind which offers Professional Supervision for people in Lived Experience roles, consultancy and co-supervision to visionary clinicians and executives. She is a Lived Experience Expertise consultant and systemic advocate. She has had a long career forging new roles in the Lived Experience movement including Inaugural Deputy Commissioner of the NSW Mental Health Commission, General Manager, Inclusion at Flourish Australia, Director of Consumer, Carer and Community Affairs with SESIAHS, Peer Manager and was one of the original 8 paid Peer Workers in NSW.
Over 3 decades Fay has sat on multiple state and federal committees. She has served as a Board member for NSW CAG, Being and SHIFT and was instrumental in establishing the National Lived Experience Alliance (The Alliance).
Fay conceived of and drove the “Why Not A Peer Worker?” strategy for Flourish which was a major influence in establishing a large Peer Workforce across the NFP sector in Australia and internationally. She was the first Lived Experience Speaker for BeyondBlue and the Rotary Health Research Fund.
Fay is a multi-award winner in human rights and disability rights including being awarded the International Meritorious Service to Community medal. Recently Fay was appointed to the Older Persons Affinity Group and is mentoring a supporting Peer Workers through the Peers Supporting Peers online conversations.
Fay has written and published peer reviewed papers in international journals and was one of the writers and editors of the Peer Work in Australia Book and the Hand Book of Rural, Remote and Very Remote Mental Health. Fay frequently appears in the media prosecuting the rights and capabilities of people living with mental health challenges, with an energy and passion that is unparalleled.
“This award is not just my award; it is our Lived Experience movements award. It has been an honour to serve our Lived Experience community. With the work that Being and the National Mental Health Consumer Alliance are leading, I hold great hope for the future for our community “ said Fay. “This is such a beautiful acknowledgement of all our work together.”
Allison Kokany EBE
Allison had a long career in mental health in NSW including 6 years as chair of the NSW Consumer Advisory Group, the forerunner for BEING – Mental Health Consumers. She was also the NSW consumer representative on the National Mental Health Consumer and Carer Forum, a dedicated Official Visitor, a consumer consultant at WentWest Primary Health Network and the Consumer Representative on the inaugural NDIA Steering Committee, contributing to the design and development of the NDIS to be responsive to the needs of those with psychosocial disability,
Allison fought for systemic change for all mental health consumers, working with the NSW Mental Health Commission to deliver law and policy reforms. She was particularly proud of her part in reforming legislation and policy reform around the use of seclusion and restraint in psychiatric hospital settings and emergency departments.
Recognising the critical impact of first responders’ behaviour on people with mental health challenges, and the benefits to consumers if it were improved, Allison took a lead role in the introduction and implementation of mental health training for first responders including police officers, paramedics, psychiatrists and GPs.
After her passing in 2018, WentWest established the Allison Kokany Scholarship in her name to honour her exemplary contribution.
Allison’s daughter Rebecca accepted the award on her mother’s behalf and expressed pride and appreciation for both the award and what Allison’s legacy means to the NSW consumer movement.
“Thank you for remembering her and for carrying forward the work she cared so deeply about, creating a world where every voice is valued and every person is treated with dignity and hope,” Rebecca said.