Profile
Ms Linda Beilharz
MHlthSc(Csewk)(Ben) La Trobe.
Adventurer and community services leader
Course of study:
Linda Beilharz is the first Australian woman to ski from the edge of land to both the South and North Poles. Each of these journeys took around two months in gruelling conditions including blizzards and -30 degree Celsius temperatures.
The experiences drew on every ounce of willpower and strength that Linda possessed. Linda uses stories from the expeditions to speak to community and school groups about resilience, team work and environmental sustainability. She has established a not-for-profit company, Journeys for Learning, which supports this work.
Linda Beilharz has lived in Bendigo for 30 years having raised a family there and working in the community development field with disability, welfare and health promotion agencies. Linda was appointed to the position of Executive Officer of Women’s Health Loddon Mallee in August 2007.
Linda is an active and significant contributor to the Bendigo community, with a strong and consistent record of community involvement through volunteer roles which have drawn on her professional and adventuring experience. She is active in many community groups including Interchange, the Bendigo Sustainability Group. She is also a private pilot and the current president of Alpine Search and Rescue.
Linda Beilharz graduated from La Trobe University in 1993 with a Graduate Diploma of Community Development and Masters of Health Sciences in 1999. In 2006 Linda was inducted onto the Victorian Women’s Honour Roll and also awarded the 1974 Memorial Grant by the Australian Women in Aviation. In 2010 Linda was chosen by Australian Geographic as the Adventurer of the Year.
