Meet the Mob
The Committee
Meet Rose
Rose previously worked in the Royal Australian Air Force but now that she is retired she focuses on wildlife care full time, working around the clock to provide for the hoards of animals that are brought in for rehab each day. Rose has been a wildlife carer for over 30 years, founding Barossa Wildlife Rescue 17 years ago all by herself. Today, BWR consists of over 50 trained members across the Barossa, all mentored by Rose.
For Rose picking a favourite animal is a monumental task, as each animal that passes through her care is special to her in their own little way… But she will admit with a bit of persuasion that our black ringtail possum Ziggy is a little extra special to her.
Meet Greg
Greg is a passionate environmentalist and animal lover. Born and raised in the Barossa Valley, he now lives in Lyndoch working for Supaloc Steel Building Systems as a customer service and planning manager. Greg has been a part of Barossa Wildlife Rescue for over 10 years. In 2012 after finding some baby grass parrots on their new property, Greg and his daughter Chelsea brought them to BWR and became members quickly after. He is now the Chairperson of the BWR Management Committee. He also designed our flash new logo!
Birds hold a special place in Greg’s heart.
“I’m a bird person. I love that they’re all so free-spirited, always having a blast no matter what. They’re very vocal and silly. I love sitting at home and listening to the cacophony of birds in the evening and watching their antics. My favourite animal we ever had at BWR was a Purple-crowned Lorikeet named Happy Feet.”
Greg’s most memorable experience with BWR was when Rose asked him to pick up an echidna puggle!
“I often pick up animals for Rose on my way home from work. After I picked up the puggle, I needed to pick up my son from school on the way. He thought it might shoot spikes at him or something if he touched it. Rose was clearly very excited and called me on the way back demanding I hurry up and bring back her puggle so she could see him!”
Meet Chelsea
Chelsea moved to Lyndoch in 2012 at the age of 8 and met Rose that year after finding some baby grass parrots. She has loved animals her whole life, and immediately offered to become a volunteer on that first day at BWR. 11 years later and she’s still here, and is now a qualified wildlife carer and the Secretary of the BWR management committee. Chelsea is currently studying her Bachelor’s in Ecology whilst also working in environmental consultation.
Chelsea’s favourite animals are Brushtail Possums. In early 2023 she began using her property as one of our main brushtail possum slow-release locations. Her most memorable moment with BWR was the experience of raising and releasing her first possum.
“Her name was Jelly, she was a little brushtail. She loved tummy rubs and grapes. She was my first slow release on my property, and I love to think that any one of the brushtail possums I see might be her.”
Meet June
June is a retired senior manager who worked primarily within the local government sector. She has undertaken many volunteer roles in the past with the most notable being as a member of Soroptimist International Barossa Valley, fulling the roles of President and Secretary during her nine years membership.
Ready to undertake a new venture, June was introduced to BWR by our Possum Coordinator Ingrid, and was happy to apply her business experience in finance to role of Treasurer.
June has lived in the Barossa region for over 20 years and enjoys being involved in projects that benefit the wider community.
Since being involved with BWR, June has become very fond of Kerry the Koala and enjoys seeing the baby joeys and possums thrive under the care of the trained volunteers. When not taking care of the finances, June enjoys being with family and friends, renovating her home, knitting and learning to play the piano.
Meet Ingrid
Ingrid has cared for 18 Brushtail and Ringtail possums, and the count is still ongoing. Her love for these animals has led her to take on the role of Lead Possum Coordinator, where she assists other carers with the recovery and release of their possums. Currently, Ingrid is looking after three Ringtail possums named Flopsy, Mopsy, and Cottontail, along with a Brushtail named Pete (better known as Pooie Pete).
Pete earned his unfortunate nickname after being brought to BWR scared and with some severe tummy issues. Despite his initial challenges, a visit to the vet and a magical injection changed Pete’s chances of survival. Within 48 hours, he was lapping up milk and now enjoys a wide range of native leaves, flowers, fruits, and vegetables.
When she’s not tending to her possums, Ingrid is actively contributing to helping people live their best lives too, with over a decade of experience working in the community.
Meet Tim
Tim’s connection with BWR began about a year ago when he and his wife found an injured Galah near their home. Seeking advice, they reached out to Rose, and Tim’s involvement with BWR grew from there.
A dog lover, Tim has two special fur babies, Merlin and Pippa. Of all of the animals at BWR his favourite is Pebbles, a Euro Joey.
His most memorable experience was his first visit to BWR at Easter 2023. Witnessing the amount of wildlife in care and the love provided to them left a lasting impression.
Tim’s retirement marks a new chapter in his life and his commitment and love for animals make him an invaluable part of the BWR team.
Our Volunteers
Meet James
Hailing from Gawler, James joined Barossa Wildlife Rescue in 2021 and he’s now our Membership Secretary and a Wildlife Rescue and Transport Volunteer.
James has a soft spot for possum and kangaroo joeys.
One memorable BWR experience involves him braving knee-high grass in summer, on the side of a highway to rescue an injured kangaroo.
Meet Kelsey
Kelsey doesn’t have a favourite animal, but rather has many animals she has loved looking after over her years of caring including many joeys, Wally the Wombat, Kookie the Kookaburra, and her rufous bettongs.
There are many memorable moments with BWR for Kelsey, but one that stands out the most is her first solo koala rescue of a koala named Bunyip.
Meet Mikaela
After bringing many animals in need to BWR over the years, Mikaela decided to join the BWR family as a volunteer – and we’re lucky to have her! Mikaela comes to our HQ at least once a week to feed and care for the animals on-site.
On top of completing year 12 this year, Mikaela is also doing a TAFE course on Animal Studies. She hopes to be accepted into Veterinary Nursing after school!
Mikaela’s admits to having a soft spot for the roos, especially Nugget, saying, “I very much relate to his naughtiness!”
When asked about her most memorable moment at BWR, Mikaela said, “Every moment is memorable, and every day is a new experience, I think everyone can agree to that! The memory that sticks out the most is having to chase around the white Geese when they moved into their new home and having to spend forever trying to remove them from under the shipping container, which is right next to their new enclosure!”
Meet Molly
Molly joined BWR after finding an injured rainbow lorikeet. “I brought in an injured lorikeet and asked if I could volunteer. I’ve been here for 6 months and couldn’t be loving it more!”
Molly’s favourite animals that she has interacted with at BWR are our kangaroo mob. Every week is a new experience for Molly, and she is loving the opportunity.
“Every time I come in there is always something new to learn and a new animal to look after.”
Meet Imelda
Now retired, Imelda discovered this volunteering opportunity after attending one of our workshops. She has also previously brought animals in need to Rose.
As a wildlife rescue organisation, all our carers are required to keep records of animals that pass through our care and upload them online for our permits. Imelda supports us by coming in every week to update our latest wildlife rescue data into our digital records (an often tedious job!).
Imelda’s most memorable experiences with BWR are when she gets to assist with feeding the baby animals in care. However, Imelda’s favourite animals will always be cats, and the resident cats at BWR headquarters give her lots of special attention for it!
Meet Simon
He first crossed paths with Rose, our founder, in 1991 at DSTO after rescuing a joey from its injured mother between Hay and Balranald in NSW. Kangaroos are Simons favourite animals, he considers them “iconically Australian”.
One of his standout moments at BWR was when the Southern Barossa Alliance (SBA) transferred responsibilities to the newly formed Committee of Barossa Wildlife Rescue Inc.
Meet Mads
An Agricultural Parts Interpreter for Lyndoch Motors in Angaston, she is now only working part time and has seized the opportunity to give back to the community through volunteering. BWR is a perfect fit for her – animals and maintenance in a hands-on environment with continuous learning.
With an Australian Mum and an English Dad, Mads was born in Hong Kong, has lived and worked across Europe, Africa, and all over Australia and has called the Barossa home for the last 14 years.
Mads has a soft spot for any of the kangaroo or possum joeys, sugar gliders, kookaburras, and basically any of the creatures that find themselves in our care. She also has a rescue Kelpie named Tibs at home.
When asked about her most memorable experiences while volunteering, Mads says, “It’s all great!” The hands-on experience with wildlife, as well as the opportunity to participate in training courses that increase her wildlife knowledge, make every experience at BWR special.
Meet Abbey
Abbey has had a passion for saving animals since she was very young. Since she didn’t quite yet have the knowledge or equipment to look after animals herself, she began with BWR by rescuing animals she came across and bringing them in to Rose. She then moved on to volunteering on Saturdays to feed the animals and has been there every week since she began 6 years ago. Abbey is currently studying acting and theatre, and when she is not doing rescues for BWR she spends her time singing in her band, artistic roller skating and being involved in the local council.
Abbey has a passion for unique Australian wildlife, with her favourite animals being the brushtailed pascogale and the owlet-nightjar. She does also have a special place in her heart for ringtail possums. Her most memorable experience with BWR was volunteering on one of BWR’s busiest days on record.
“I believe I was at Rose’s for 11 or 12 hours, running back and forth between vets and rescue locations. By the end of it all we were all sitting on the kitchen floor after absolutely crashing!”