Judy has begun liaising with police and politicians, trying to find effective ways of dealing with domestic violence and improving education.

“It’s just really about keeping it out there in the spotlight and making the community aware of what people go through with domestic violence,” she said.

She will be speaking all over Queensland and NSW about her own experiences. Having done her schooling here, she promised Inverell would be at the top of the list.

“I’ve suffered everything that you can think of. I was even held at gunpoint,” she said. 

“(I’ll be) sharing my story of domestic violence, and what I went through and how I survived and overcame it, and moving forward”.

“You know, it’s not just a matter of someone getting a backhander or being verbally abused, there are a lot of emotional scars that come attached to being abused”.

Judy said she called her campaign ‘Be Kind & Have Courage to Offer A Helping Hand’ because that is the best way to help victims. 

“A lot of victims are too afraid to open up. They’re too afraid to come forward, and nine times out of 10, they need a friend. They just need somebody to listen to them”.

“Don’t be afraid to ask if everything is ok and offer a helping hand. So many times, people need help and they don’t know where to go to, they don’t know who to trust”. Judy explained that people in abusive relationships are vulnerable and simply letting them know you’re there can make a huge difference.

Judy is campaigning for many domestic violence issues, including educating authority figures and following in the Victorian government’s footsteps with Risk Assessment and Management Panels (RAMPs) which identify and respond to families at high risk.

“I think we need to make the community aware that this is a social problem. It’s not a problem that just persists behind closed doors. It is a very serious problem and it’s a problem that the community, every community in Australia needs to address”.