Governance & Leadership

Dr Leena Vuorinen

Chairperson

Dr Leena Vuorinen has served as a Council Member since 2011 and as Chair since 2021. She is an active member of the St Andrew’s Lutheran Church Brisbane City congregation. 

Leena holds a PhD and Master of Social Sciences focusing on social gerontology. Her research interests include ageing in various settings, the quality of life and lifestyles among older adults, and the social problems that vulnerable older people may face in society today. 

Leena’s career in aged care spans more than 30 years. She has worked across service design and development, quality and continuous improvement, policy development, training and education, case coordination and care management, in both the aged care and community care sectors.  

Leena is General Manager, Ageing Well at Deaf Connect, overseeing in-home services for deaf, deaf-blind and hard of hearing older people in Queensland, New South Wales, Australian Capital Territory and South Australia. 

Andrew Spyropoulos

Vice Chair

Andrew Spyropoulos has served as a Council Member and Vice Chair since 2019. He is a mediator, facilitator and conflict and dispute resolution practitioner. He holds a Graduate Diploma in Strategic Leadership, leading and influencing change in real estate and business management. 

Andrew has served as a member of several committees within the Lutheran Church of Australia Queensland District, including the District Church Board, Constitution Committee and Risk, Audit and Finance Committee. 

He has more than 25 years of board-level experience across the public, commercial and not-for-profit sectors, with particular experience in the professional services, hospitality and fast-moving consumer goods industries. 

Jennifer Danslow

Secretary

Jennifer Danslow has served as a Council Member since 2013 and as Secretary since 2019. She is currently a Senior Consultant and Lead Process Engineer with Advisian, part of the Worley Group.  

Jennifer holds a Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) from University of Queensland and a Graduate Diploma in Business Administration (with Distinction) from Queensland University of Technology. 

She has a wealth of experience gained in employment, governance and community roles with a range of organisations and committees, including St Peter’s Lutheran College Council, Scouts Queensland and Queensland University of Technology. 

Cheryl Steinhardt

Member

Cheryl Steinhardt has served as a Council Member since 2019. She has provided continuous service on the District Church Board of the Lutheran Church of Australia Queensland District since 2010, and is an active member of the Redeemer Lutheran Church Laidley congregation. 

Cheryl is a Councillor on the Lockyer Valley Regional Council and a company director of several businesses in the Lockyer Valley. She also serves in executive roles on several committees, with her local congregation, parish and the wider community.  

Cheryl holds qualifications in management and has completed studies in governance. She continues to build her knowledge of aged care and her commitment to the work of the Lutheran Church in service and mission. 

Theresa Stolz

Member

Theresa Stolz was elected as a Council Member in 2021. She has previously served on the District Church Board of the Lutheran Church of Australia Queensland District. 

Theresa is an accredited social worker within Queensland, and is currently working in the health sector. She is passionate about her work, as is reflected in her ongoing contribution to research and training for people who have experienced domestic and family violence and sexual abuse. 

Theresa is also a congregational member of St Peters Lutheran Church in Indooroopilly. 

Pastor Andrew Koehler

Member

Pastor Andrew Koehler has served as a Council Member since June 2023. He has served in parishes and colleges in Queensland and the Northern Territory, and as Lutheran Youth Queensland’s Youth District Pastor. He is currently Pastor at St Andrews Lutheran Church in Tallebudgera. 

Pastor Andrew holds a Bachelor of Theology and a Graduate Diploma in Ministry from the Australian Lutheran College, and a Graduate Diploma of Education from the University of Queensland. He brings more than 30 years’ experience as a board member and ex-officio board member with several schools. 

Anna Renner

Member

Anna Renner was elected as a Council Member in 2024. She has over 15 years of experience as a nurse within tertiary health facilities in Brisbane and is currently the Cardiac Surgical Care Coordinator at the Queensland Children’s Hospital. Anna also has experience in her early nursing career working in a regional aged care centre as a personal care assistant and later as a registered nurse.

Anna’s current job gives her experience supporting not only children with complex health needs but also their families as the navigate the healthcare system. Anna has a personal connection to Lutheran Services – three of her grandparents have been residents in both Zion and St Paul’s aged care homes.

She is a current practicing member of St Peters Lutheran Church in Indooroopilly.

Nick Ryan

CEO

Nick Ryan is a widely experienced CEO, Board Member and senior executive with 30 years’ experience in a range of human services including aged care, government, youth services and education. Nick has led and advised a variety of organisations from government departments, industry representative bodies, not-for-profit service providers and faith-based charities. 

Nick joined Lutheran Services in 2019 following an interim position as CEO at Southern Cross Care Queensland. Prior to this, he was CEO of the Australian Aged Care Quality Agency and CEO of Aged Care Queensland (now part of Leading Age Services Australia). He has also served on the Boards of the Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority, the Leukaemia Foundation of Queensland and the Archdiocese of Brisbane Catholic Education Council. 

Nick is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, a Fellow of the Australian and New Zealand School of Government and a graduate of the Melbourne College of Divinity (now the University of Divinity) and the University of Canberra. 

Cara Benoit

Executive Lead – People and Culture

Cara Benoit is an experienced Executive and Board Director with over 25 years experience in Human Resources and Commercial management positions in both the non-profit and the private sector and across a variety of industries throughout Australia and Asia Pacific.

Cara holds a BA in Social Science and a Graduate Certificate in Human Resources Management and is a Professional Certified Member of the Australian Human Resources Institute.

Cara is experienced in guiding organisations to create a culture that creates mutual value and enables people to thrive.

Rev Dr Russell Briese

Director of Chaplaincy and Ministry Development

Rev Dr Russell Briese holds a Bachelor of Theology from Luther Seminary (now Australian Lutheran College) in Adelaide, a Bachelor of Arts in German and Philosophy from the University of Adelaide, and a PhD in Systematic Theology from the University of Regensburg in Germany.

Pastor Russell is the Bishop’s Representative on the Council of Queensland Churches Together and a former President. He has served as a parish pastor in Brisbane and Sydney for more than 15 years, and as Coordinator of Chaplaincy at Griffith University for 12 years. He has also held academic roles at the Australian Catholic University and other theological colleges.

Tricia Davis

Executive Lead – Aged Care & Quality

Tricia Davis is an experienced leader who has held significant board and executive roles across the profit and not-for-profit sectors. She has helped many organizations grow, thrive, and navigate transformative change. Tricia’s experience includes responding to challenges such as national health reforms, step changes in funding, building contemporary service delivery models, and commercialization.

Since joining Lutheran Services in 2015, Tricia has led the rebrand from Lutheran Community Care to Lutheran Services in 2017 and the subsequent development of a contemporary and competitive marketing, sales, and customer experience function.

Tricia is motivated by helping to contribute to the quality of life of residents, clients, and their families. She holds a Physiotherapy degree and an MBA from the University of Queensland. She is a Fellow and Certified Practising Marketer of the Australian Marketing Institute and a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Charles Grady

Executive Lead – Enterprise and Digital Transformation

Charles Grady is an experienced corporate and finance manager with an emphasis on strategic and operational planning. 

He has held senior positions in a number of public and not-for-profit organisations, at both the state and federal level. Charles has successfully led corporate teams through significant change including mergers, expansion, process and system reengineering, and digital transformation. 

Charles holds a Bachelor of Commerce, Finance and Economics from Bond University. 

Emma Hunt

Executive Lead – Property and Assets

Emma Hunt joined Lutheran Services in 2023 as Executive Lead of Property and Assets. Prior to this, Emma led the property strategy division of Comlink Australia, a not-for-profit organisation providing services for older Australians. She has also worked in the private and government sectors in property development, property finance and funds management, with experience across all asset classes, including affordable housing and retirement.

Emma has considerable experience across the property development value chain from strategy, acquisitions and capital structuring to development, cost management and asset and facilities management. She holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Sydney and an MBA from the University of Technology Sydney, for which she received the Graduate Management Association of Australia Prize and the Zonta Club of Sydney Prize.

Emma is passionate about social impact. As part of her MBA, she participated in an immersive project with a school and prison in the United States, exploring the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.

Thea Madigan

Executive Lead – Finance

Thea Madigan has more than 30 years’ experience in financial management. Thea started her career as a registered nurse and later studied a Bachelor of Commerce at the University Queensland. In her corporate life, she primarily worked in the media sector. Thea joined Lutheran Services in 2019, embarking on a rewarding new career in the not-for-profit sector.

Thea has worked as a team member successfully leading organisations through significant disruption and organisational change. She has experience in change management and digital transformation within large organisations, and has partnered with executive leaders to develop and execute strategic and operational initiatives. Thea is a Certified Practising Accountant (CPA).

Melody Nalatu

Executive Lead – Customer, Marketing and Product

Melody Nalatu is an experienced leader and strategist with over 20 years’ experience in management and advisory roles spanning corporate, government and not-for-profit sectors. She brings expertise in marketing, stakeholder engagement, communication and reputation management to her current role of Executive Lead – Customer, Marketing & Product.

Joining Lutheran Services in 2021 as General Manager – Communication and Engagement, Melody has led significant organisational projects to build the organisation’s position as a provider and employer of choice and embody our Lutheran identity.

Melody has a passion for enabling positive change and driving organisational value. She holds a Bachelor of Business and Master of Applied Positive Psychology and is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Justin Savaille

Executive Lead – Community Services

Justin Savaille is an experienced transformational leader with experience in both not-for-profit and private organisations.

With a focus on strategy, continuous improvement and team engagement, Justin is experienced in navigating complex challenges to deliver measurable results to organisations and their clients.

Justin holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business from the Queensland University of Technology and has accreditation in coaching and various behavioural profiling tools.