Rosies Patron

The Honourable Leneen Forde AC commenced her working life in 1953 in the medical field in Ontario, Canada. In the following year she was accepted into the Haematology Department of the Royal Brisbane Hospital. She changed career paths, and in 1970, graduated from the University of Queensland with a Bachelor of Laws.

She commenced work as a solicitor the following year at Deacons, Graham and James where she was later accepted as a partner. She was the founding President of the Queensland Women Lawyers’ Association, and in 1974 she represented Queensland in the Australian Women Lawyers’ Association.

During the 1970s she was also a member of the Queensland Council for Civil Liberties. During the next two decades Leneen held various illustrious positions within the legal profession.

From 1990 to 1992, Leneen became the International President of Zonta International and at the same time convened the Queensland Women’s Consultative Council and chaired the Office of Economic Development for the City of Brisbane.

In 1992, Leneen Forde was appointed Governor of Queensland, a position she held until 1997.

In 1993, she was awarded the Companion of the Order of Australia. (AC) In 1998, she was appointed Chair of the Commission of Inquiry into the Abuse of Children in Queensland Institutions. Leneen was the Chancellor of Griffith University until June 2015. She has been Rosies’ patron since 1997.

‘That young people who are homeless know they will always be welcomed and accepted at Rosies provides a very important sense of belonging.”  The Honourable Leneen Forde AC