It was with deep sorrow that in December 2024, Healing and Hope learned of the tragic death of Chris Mackey.
Chris was such a champion of our work with survivors of child sexual abuse and their families. His support of Geelong Grammar School in facilitating this meaningful work was and will continue to be sincerely appreciated.
Chris provided generous pro bono advice to members of our Healing and Hope community and his expertise and understanding of the effects of childhood trauma offered a profound dimension to the healing.
Chris and his wife Sue attended the Healing and Hope White Balloon Day event in September 2024 as our guests. We are so grateful to have had that time with him. His feedback, kindly provided following this therapeutic occasion, will remain a treasured piece of our Healing and Hope story and his message to us was to please share in any way we felt it might be most useful.
We share it here with you now -
Healing and Hope – a White Balloon Day Reflection
Having recently attended a Healing and Hope function at the school's White Balloon Day I’m writing to express how impressed I am with this program. As a psychologist who has specialized for 35 years in the trauma field, I'd like to acknowledge some things that stood out to me as most heartening.
From the several people I met who had accessed Healing and Hope services it was well evident that they strongly appreciated the genuine support they received from Kate Parsons and Tanya Bishop. Their apparent trust and comfort in relating to others at the function struck me as a likely important antidote to the unwarranted shame felt by many abuse survivors, a common harmful legacy of their perpetrators taking no responsibility for their criminal actions against vulnerable children. Healing and Hope appeared to provide broader acknowledgment from the school community to those afflicted. Such validation at a wider community level offers something beyond what individual psychological therapy can truly provide and can help undo at least some of the harm.
I was further impressed by the clarity and authenticity of Rebecca Cody's words in acknowledging the impact of past abuse on former school students. Along with the involvement of the Principal and other influential members on the Healing and Hope Board, that seemed to demonstrate that the school's concern for abuse survivors goes beyond lip service. The carefully chosen words of students of varying ages, spelling out ways to help themselves and others keep safe and well, was uplifting in that it would help ensure that current and future generations will be better equipped to protect themselves from serious abuse and its harshest impact.
In attending the function, I learnt more about the various forms of practical assistance offered through Healing and Hope, including care packages, therapy assistance, retreats and family support in addition to the important individual support offered by Kate and Tanya. These forms of assistance seem well targeted for easing the distress of sufferers through practical means offered with genuine kindness. I note the varied benefits to those served are reflected in testaments on the Healing and Hope website.
As a former school parent, in my view the existence of such a program is one of the most heartening things I've encountered to reflect a modern and enlightened culture at the school. This had a greater impact for me as many people would not have witnessed what my wife, Sue, and I did that day, given that it was more an internal school event than something open to a wider public. Congratulations to all involved in the establishment, support and delivery of this program.
Chris Mackey
Clinical Psychologist




