Women putting their best feet forward

A 90-year-old grandmother who has graduated with a Master’s degree from The University of Melbourne has urged others not to let age stand in the way of pursuing their dreams.

ACROSS THE COUNTRY

women are stepping out to make a change. After the birth of her twin daughters, mother of five Dolly Abboud was told one of the girls, Chanel, would be non-verbal and never walk. Eight years on, Chanel has mastered talking and undergone surgery that’s hoped to help her one day walk with a frame. Together, they are ambassadors for the Cerebral Palsy Alliance’s Steptember fundraiser, challenging people to walk 10,000 steps a day for 28 days throughout September. It’s a challenge Belinda Teh should have no trouble meeting, after she walked from Melbourne to Perth to promote the need for legal change in Western Australia to allow for voluntary assisted dying. Belinda walked in honour of her mother, Mareia, who was denied assisted dying in Perth in 2016 after battling terminal cancer.