She credits her strength, determination and know-how to her family — though her journey was one they begged her not to make.

Her father transformed from a lawyer to a sheep farmer then back again, opening a law firm at 67 years old. By the time he died five years later, he had three offices in three different towns.

Gemma credits her strength and skills to the upbringing her parents gave her. Source: Supplied

“Growing up on a farm, being so far from town, I never saw tradesmen,” Gemma tells SBS Insight.

“We were forced to do everything ourselves. And I always think about my father — if he could start a whole new business at 67, then we can all do something.”

Gemma says living on a remote farm, her family learned to do everything themselves. Source: Supplied

Gemma’s dream to help in Africa stayed with her throughout high school. At university in Melbourne, she met a nun who’d been running a school in Uganda and told her they needed maths and science teachers.

“I thought, wouldn’t it be great to build a good quality private school that didn’t charge school fees — so kids wouldn’t have to leave if their parents passed away or struggled to pay.”

Love changes everything

But she’d come to Africa for work not love, so when Richard asked for her contact details, she gave him fake ones.

A holiday to Tanzania during the 1980s changed the direction of Gemma’s life. Source: Supplied

“His letters were returned and he realised the address was dodgy. But he knew I lived in Masaka — though that’s like saying we lived in Newcastle.”

“The girls adored him so I thought ‘ok, we’ll start going out’.”

But Gemma remained determined. Four years later, she flew to Tanzania, married Richard with only one of her brothers present, and started to raise funds to open a free private school to educate those in poverty.

From ‘hopeless’ to hopeful

But her father-in-law gave her two acres of land in Arusha, a town near the foothills of Mount Meru near Mt Kilimanjaro, and she raised enough money to build a classroom and playground. She opened the school within six months with just three children.

With plenty of help, Gemma built the first classrooms of her school and opened within six months with three children. Source: Supplied

“Growing up on a farm made me a jack of all trades. I had to deal with electricians, carpenters, builders and tradesmen. All my Swahili for the first five years was construction-related,” Gemma says.

It was also a busy time in her personal life; Gemma and Richard were welcoming their own children.

Soon after Gemma and Rich were married, they welcomed their first child. Source: Supplied

In 2025, the School of St Jude has one primary school and two secondary schools over three sites, around 330 staff plus 1,800 primary and secondary students. It also supports around 400 university students.

St Jude has an excellent academic record in Tanzania but requires $10 million each year to keep running, which is provided purely by donors, more than 90 per cent of them in Australia.

Gemma and her former students graduating from university. Source: Supplied

Being free, the school receives thousands of applications. To earn a place, students must sit a series of entrance exams, prove they volunteer in the community — and come from poverty.

“Around four kids per month lose a parent at St Jude, but because they’re on full scholarships, none of them have to leave,” Gemma says.

‘Follow your dream’

“I’m a practical person and not very reflective, but I get very emotional when I run into my students out there in the world. Oh my gosh, that does it for me,” Gemma says.

Gemma and Richard now have a family of four children, who are each making their own ways in the world. In them and in her students, Gemma tries to instil the importance of dreams, following your instincts and hard work.

Gemma and Richard now have four grown-up children. Source: Supplied

“I tell them they can do whatever they want to do, but they have to be prepared to work really hard every day to overcome all the obstacles.