Like you I am a beekeeper and have a passion for the wellbeing of my bees and the beekeeping industry.

My working life has been varied from Dairy to Electrical, Disability and Mental health and lots of roles in between, I have enjoyed the experiences, especially working with people.

Having kept bees for many years and managing a commercial apiary and retail of beekeeping equipment, I received the opportunity to change my career focus to honey bees: firstly, as a contract trainer for Tocal College Honey bee education, and then moving into the role of Bee Biosecurity Surveillance for NSW DPI prevention and preparedness.

My bee world changed dramatically on the 22nd June 2022 after routine surveillance of Port of Newcastle sentinel hives identified the presence of Varroa destructor.

Currently my role as Honey bee education coordinator with Tocal college and NSW DPI has given me the opportunity to assist with Varroa education material working with beekeeping experts plus recreational and commercial beekeepers across the state.

Change is not always easy but with education we can begin the journey and start moving forward into managing Varroa within our honey bee colonies