Mary Wooldridge
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Mary Wooldridge (born 29 July 1967) is the member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly representing the electorate of Doncaster for the Liberal Party of Australia. She was elected in November 2006. Prior to her election, she was a business consultant and political activist.
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[edit] Childhood and Education
Mary was born and raised in Melbourne and is the youngest of four children. Mary graduated from Melbourne University with a Bachelor of Commerce degree with Honours in 1989. In 1994 she completed a Master of Business Administration from the Harvard Business School. She is the sister of Michael Wooldridge, a former Australian Federal Minister of Health.
[edit] Professional career
Mary has worked in executive roles with a number of companies including consultants McKinsey & Company in New York and London, Australian Consolidated Press and Publishing and Broadcasting Limited in Sydney[1].
Between 2001 and 2005 Mary was the chief executive of The Foundation For Young Australians, a not-for-profit charitable trust. In 2002 she was awarded the new Chief executive officer award in Equity Trustees National Nonprofit CEO awards for this role.
[edit] Political Career
Mary joined the Liberal Party of Australia in 1987.
From 1999 to 2001 Mary worked as a Senior Adviser to Senator the Hon Nick Minchin. As part of her duties with the Senator, Wooldridge took part in an overseas trip that was the cause of some consternation for the Federal Labor Opposition.(1) (2).
She chaired the Commonwealth Advisory Committee on Homelessness, which advises the Federal Minister for Family and Community Services on matters relating to homelessness.
In May 2006 she was preselected as the Liberal candidate for the seat of Doncaster to replace retiring member Victor Perton, and was successfully elected to the Parliament of Victoria in November 2006.
She was elected in the November 2006 election.
The Liberal party was defeated at the election and remained in Opposition. Despite being a new Member, Wooldridge was appointed to three Shadow Ministries. She is Shadow Minister for Mental Health, Shadow Minister for Drug Abuse and Shadow Minister for Aged Care.[1]
[edit] Personal
Mary is married to Andrew Barling, a doctor, and they have a son, Jamison. Mary has been a Director of the Breast Cancer Network Australia, the Otis Foundation, Foundation Boroondara and Trinity College at Melbourne University.
