A first manager became a life mentor—a relationship sustained through teaching, care, and trust.
They first met as manager and young professional. During Alicia’s first four working years, her boss taught through daily example: how to carry responsibility, how to recognise standards, and how care can appear in practical gestures rather than declarations.
The relationship continued through Alicia’s move to Melbourne and across roughly twenty years. They still meet around their shared May birthdays to exchange memories and speak about their lives. Alicia describes her former manager as a life coach and mentor whose influence reached her values, direction, and approach to education. The phrase she keeps is simple: love and freedom.
The title changed. The guidance remained.
