What you need to know about this year’s Australian of the Year.
1. Rosie is 52, and grew up in an English village. She moved to Australia after backpacking here as a 24-year-old and now lives in Tyabb in Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula.
2. Rosie became a household name in February 2014, when she lost her only child, 11-year-old Luke, who was murdered by his father at after-school cricket practice.
3. The morning after Luke’s death Rosie spoke to the media to raise awareness about family violence. “I want to tell everybody that family violence happens to everybody, no matter how nice your house is, no matter how intelligent you are,” she said.
4. Her honesty and courage saw her emerge from the tragedy as an agent for change, becoming a voice for Australia’s victims of domestic violence.
5. Rosie champions efforts to fight domestic violence, making many media and public speaking appearances to highlight the issue and call for systemic changes.
6. Some 27 Australian children, on average, are killed each year by a parent, according to the Domestic Violence Resource Centre Victoria.
7. Rosie is an animal lover and cares for donkeys, goats, sheep and dogs on her property.
8. She is smart, witty and fearless. And she uses these qualities for good. “When Luke died, I thought, ‘I have had the worst thing that could happen to me, so I don’t think I have got anything left to fear in this world’… You could say I don’t even fear death anymore, because whatever is in the next world, that’s where I’ll get to see him again.”
9. Rosie had court orders against Luke’s dad, Greg who wasn’t allowed to be alone with Luke. She tried for years to have an amicable relationship with Greg, but it would always end in abuse.
10. For Rosie, the hardest time of the day is going to bed. Luke slept in his mother’s bed every night. “He was just there,” she says, “and he’s have his little feet touching my legs… That’s the time that’s hard… going to bed. I used to every day, even if he was asleep, just kiss his cheek. He was beautiful.”
