About Us

Thancoupie’s Bursary Fund was established in 2012 in Cairns, where Thancoupie had close links and lived at her studio in Trinity Beach for more than two decades.

The Fund is a registered public company under the Corporations Act, limited by guarantee.

Governance of the Fund is vested in the Board of Directors listed below. The Directors ensure Thancoupie’s Bursary Fund complies with legislation governing the management, operations and obligations of Australian Charitable Trust Funds as required by the Australian Taxation Office.

Leneen Forde AC – Patron

The Board of Directors was honoured to welcome Ms Leneen Forde AC as the Patron of Thancoupie’s Bursary Fund in April 2013.

Chancellor of Griffith University since 2000,  Ms Forde served as the twenty-second Governor of Queensland from 1992 until 1997. She chaired the Commission of Inquiry into Abuse of Children in Queensland Institutions during 1998 and 1999. In January 1993, Ms Forde was appointed a Companion of the Order of Australia in recognition of her service to the law, to improving the status of women, and to economic and business development. Ms Forde is a Dame of Grace in the Order of St. John of Jerusalem. She was International President of Zonta from 1990 until 1992, and 1991 Queenslander of the Year.

Management – Board of Directors

Jean Little OAM – is an educator with extensive community development experience in Western Cape communities.

Ingrid Hoffmann – has extensive visual arts management and cultural development experience in regional and remote areas throughout Australia.

Rita Moore – is a family representative with extensive community sector experience.

Jennifer Isaacs AM – is a writer, art consultant and well known through her seminal books on Aboriginal Culture with a life-long family association with Thancoupie.

Craig Hoy – is a Cairns based  arts educator and artist who, while living in Weipa, met and worked closely with Thancoupie including assisting with her Bawjathi Holiday Camps.

Paul Matthews –  is a local veterinarian who has been practicing in Cairns for over 30 years, during which time, he has been a strong patron of the arts and active in community engagement.

Anthony Todd Weller – is a Registered Nurse, with a background in Arts advocacy , currently working as an Educator with the National Program Centre for the Australian Nurse-Family Partnership Program.

Belinda Down – has lived in Cairns for over 25 years and worked in regional development all over FNQ; is currently working for Qld Dept Premier and Cabinet for Regional Qld; is a passionate supporter of regional arts.

Experts as co-opted – Art practitioners and educators of high professional standing will oversee the application process.