RKWN Annual Cocktail Event 2019

  • When: Wednesday, 11 September 2019
  • Time: 5:30 pm - 7:30 pm
  • Where: Russell Kennedy, Level 12, 469 La Trobe Street Melbourne
Register for event Share
The Russell Kennedy Women’s Network (RKWN) invites you along to its annual cocktail function.
Diverse group of business women 1100x508

This year’s event will feature two organisations, SisterWorks and Free to Feed that are working with refugees and asylum seekers to create a community, develop their skills and get them into active employment.

This year we are delighted to have Luz Restrepo, Founder and CEO of SisterWorks, as our guest speaker. Luz will share her amazing story of arriving in Australian in 2010, seeking political asylum and her journey founding SisterWorks.

The RKWN has selected SisterWorks as its charity to support for this year. We have a set of shared values and a vision to empowerconnect and developSisterWorks is a Not-for-Profit social organisation with a mission to support women who are refugees, asylum seekers or migrants. The organisation strives to improve women's confidence, wellbeing and sense of belonging, and help them to become economically empowered.

There will be the opportunity to purchase some of the products that have been hand crafted by the SisterWorks community. The products include homewares, kitchenwares, preserves and body products.

This event will be catered by Free to Feed  which was founded in late 2015. They assist asylum seekers to find meaningful employment opportunities using their existing skills and experiences which facilitates community interconnectivity, as well as breaking the sense of social isolation often faced by these new arrivals. It is a not-for-profit social enterprise in awe of the potential and spirit of refugees, people seeking asylum and new migrants – and appreciative of what they offer as new community members.

Join us at our Annual Cocktail Event to hear from our guest speaker and connect with the Russell Kennedy Women's Network.

Your Speaker

Luz Repstrepo

Luz Restrepo

Founder and CEO, SisterWorks

"I have a vision of women of many cultures supporting each other through working together"

As a political refugee, Luz arrived in Australia in 2010, with my life in tatters and spoke no English. In 2011, along with a group of 25 women experiencing similar challenges, Luz began to make and sell crafts around Melbourne.

SisterWorks Inc. was born in May 2013 when a committee of volunteers joined us with legal, fund-raising, marketing, and administrative skills to give support and structure to the project. Today, SisterWorks is a not-for-profit social enterprise 'Handmade with Love in Melbourne'. Through work and entrepreneurship, Luz's mission continues to be supporting women who are refugees, asylum seekers or migrants to improve their confidence, mental wellbeing and sense of belonging.

Your Host

MJH BW

Marika Hubble-Marriott

Convenor of the Russell Kennedy Women's Network

Marika is the head of the Dispute Resolution team and has over 20 years of experience within the legal industry. In Marika's tenure as the Convenor of the RKWN, she has significantly built the profile of the network and fundraised for a number of organisations that strive to empower women.

Event location

Event contact

For further information please contact Tom Lewis