All roads lead home

Eleanor Clinton spent ten years travelling and working across the world – from Europe to Asia, from New Zealand to North and South America – and gave up her job in New York to return to her roots.

The Lifestyle Coordinator at Uniting AgeWell Newnham Community Aldersgate Village lives in Beaconsfield, just north of Launceston, and says she’s doing what she loves where she loves.

“I spent four of those ten years in a campervan travelling the length and breadth of Australia and I can honestly say that Tasmania offers it all,” she explains. “Beautiful beaches for swimming and kayaking, playing in the snow at Cradle Mountain in winter, world-class hiking trails, incredible scenery especially the rugged, wild west coast and the friendliest people on the planet.”

But she says one of her main reasons for returning home was to raise a family in the peaceful, environment that Tasmania offers. “My two children are safe and happy,” she says.

The Hobart-born 36-year-old, who used to work in tourism, is also delighted to be in a job that she says has real purpose and meaning.

“Tourism was fun, but I wanted to be able to make a real difference in the lives of others. I’ve always been drawn to older people and studying a Cert 1V in Leisure and Health was the best career move I ever made.”

Eleanor worked in a centre providing social inclusion for older people and then worked in home care before joining Aldersgate Village nearly two years ago.

She brings her own special brand of enthusiasm and joy to the role, taking great pride in providing residents with a range of fun activities that offer new experiences and challenges. She ran a water-bombing event that everyone is still talking about, is organizing a fair and a blue light disco, and has a range of fun outings to explore this beautiful part of the world.

She also loves her working environment. “The team at Aldersgate Village is warm and inclusive, we’re all down to earth and all pull together to make things happen,” Eleanor explains.

International Women’s Day is an important opportunity for Uniting AgeWell to recognise the impact of our valued members of staff, like Eleanor, and to reaffirm our commitment to providing truly inclusive career pathways.

With 78 per cent of the workforce identifying as female, Uniting AgeWell offers a range of career benefits including flexible work arrangements to enable staff to work around their family commitments.