It is with both gratitude and sadness that we share that our wonderful Clinical Director, highly respected Speech Pathologist, and dear friend, Sarah Young, will be finishing her role with us in May.
Sarah has recently relocated to Adelaide to be closer to family and has accepted an exciting new opportunity closer to home. While we are genuinely thrilled for her and this next chapter, she will be deeply missed by our team, our families, and the wider DWSP community.
Many may not know that Sarah was the very first therapist employed by Dee back in 2009. Although her first chapter with us was brief, we were fortunate enough to welcome her back in 2020, and what followed has been an extraordinary five-and-a-half years of leadership, growth, and impact.
Sarah returned to DWSP at a time when the world, and our profession, were navigating enormous change. Through the challenges of COVID, lockdowns, changing service models, NDIS reforms, and an evolving healthcare landscape, Sarah brought steady leadership, flexibility, warmth, and humour. She helped guide our team through uncertain times while keeping people, connection, and compassion at the centre of everything she did.
From the moment Sarah rejoined us, she brought not only extensive clinical expertise, but also a natural gift for mentoring and supporting others. This quickly led to her stepping into the Clinical Director role, where she flourished as a thoughtful, responsive, and innovative leader.
Over the years, Sarah has led a large and diverse clinical team, contributed significantly to the growth of our professional development programs, managed complex situations with care and professionalism, and continued to maintain a busy clinical caseload. She has done all of this with remarkable energy and a sense of joy that lifted those around her.
Those who know Sarah will understand that she brought something else equally important to DWSP: fun.
Many team members still remember her very first Team Day, arriving in a gold suit and leading everyone in a dance. In many ways, she never stopped dancing. Sarah has been instrumental in shaping the vibrant, connected, and positive culture we value so highly today. Her energy has been infectious, and her ability to bring people together is something truly special.
What stands out most about Sarah is her unwavering focus on people. No matter how busy things became, she always made time for relationships, encouragement, laughter, and helping others feel seen and supported. That legacy will remain long after her final day.
On a personal level, Sarah has been not only a valued colleague but a trusted partner in leadership and a treasured friend. Watching her grow into a leadership role she once doubted she was ready for, and then seeing her boldly embrace this next opportunity, has been a privilege.
While we will miss Sarah enormously, we know this move allows her to spend precious time with family and begin an exciting new chapter in Adelaide.
Sarah, thank you for everything you have given to DWSP, our team, and the many families you have supported over the years. Your impact has been immense, your legacy lasting, and your presence unforgettable.
We wish you every happiness and success in what comes next. And, if we are lucky, perhaps one day there may even be chapter three.