Our People
The Soul Team come from different walks of life and experience and is made up of volunteers, staff, the Management Team and the Board of Trustees. There are a 150 plus volunteers contributing 370 plus hours per week to the community.
Rick Prosser
Rick Prosser began an interim position as the Acting CEO of Soul Cafe in May 2015 and then CEO in June 2016. Rick has had 20 years experience in leadership of charities and was awarded the 2014 Newcastle City Council Citizen of the Year for his work.
Sue Prosser
Sue has served at Soul Cafe for many years and has a heart for the broken, lost and homeless.
Sue has worked as the Kitchen Manager since August 2016 and Floor Manager since September 2018 supervising multiple teams of volunteers.
Tonya Huen
Tonya joined the Soul Team in June 2016 and works 2 days a week keeping the accounts of Soul and Life Church in order. Tonya has many years experience in administration and she also works part time in the accounts department of a local High School.
Howard Mole
Howard Mole has been a trustee and volunteer of Soul Cafe for many years. In 2019 Howard has also taken on the role as point leader for Soul's major fundraiser 'Sleepout for Soul' and as part of the management team.
Jen Marlette
Jen joined the team as a volunteer in 2016 after learning of the difficulties faced by an old school friend who was at that time homeless. She is a brilliant administrator and is responsible for event administration and communications.
Nicholas Ray
Nic joined the team in 2017 and looks after the volunteer rosters and new volunteer applications. He is a personable young man who relates well to guests, volunteers and all who come into Soul Cafe.
Suellen Jenkins
Suellen and her partner Mark have been key volunteers since offering to help at Soul early 2018. Suellen is now on staff providing guest support assisting them to access accommodation and services. Both Suellen and Mark are huge contributors to the Soul Team.
Ellen Davies
Ellen began volunteering in 2019 and has joined the staff to assist with some of her specialist skills in finance and administration.
Tim Hennessy
Tim is the Soul Cafe Mental Health Clinician. He commenced in 2017 and plays a vital role in the care of Soul guests providing mental health care and referrals to services.
The Trustees
Soul Cafe comes under the umbrella of LifeShapers Family Services (ABN: 67 385 398 045) which is a not-for-profit registered charity providing real, relative and restorative assistance without any strings attached.
Soul Cafe (LifeShapers) is governed by a voluntary Board of Trustees. The board comprises of five trustees, each with unique skills and experience that contribute to the sound governance of the charity.
Sharon Claydon MP with Rick Prosser, Howard Mole (front row) and ORICA GM with Anthony Cummins and Kev Berger OAM (back row).
CHAIRMAN - RICK PROSSER
Rick Prosser began an interim position as the Acting CEO of Soul Cafe in May 2015 and then CEO in June 2016. Rick has had 20 years experience in leadership of charities and was awarded the 2014 Newcastle City Council Citizen of the Year for his work.
Rick and his wife Sue Prosser are the Senior Ministers of Life Church Newcastle. Soul Cafe is the social justice expression of their church as they seek to assist and serve the poor and vulnerable in Newcastle.
TRUSTEE - DAVID ZAMMIT
BSc (Arch) B.Arch (Hons), Architecture from the University of Sydney.David is a retired registered Architect with over 20 years of business experience as CEO of his business enterprises. David has over 26 years of experience, serving on not for profit boards, international missions boards and church boards/elderships.
VICE CHAIRMAN - HOWARD MOLE
Howard is the Centre Manager of the BaptistCare Windale Centre working with the disadvantaged and those facing social, financial and other challenges. Previously he was with the Salvation Army for 30 years including 10 years as an Officer.
Howard has held a number of social service roles in the Newcastle area, including Welfare management, Counselling, Financial counselling, and homeless accommodation. He has been active in the Rotary Club of Waratah, the Hunter Newcastle Bikers Memorial Ride, Tinned Food and Blanket Run, the Kids Toy Run & the establishment of the Combined Charities Christmas Warehouse.
TRUSTEE - KEVIN BERGER
D.A.L.E. Christian School founder and Executive Director.
In 2015 Kevin was awarded the 'Medal of the Order of Australia' for his work in establishing an alternative learning environment for students struggling in mainstream education.
Kevin also volunteers at Soul Cafe assisting guests and supporting them to connect to services.
TRUSTEE - ANTHONY CUMMINS
Anthony Cummins is a chartered accountant and came on as a trustee of Soul Cafe in 2018.