In The Media

MIAMI, QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA, June 14, 2024 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Samantha Brunskill has been named Emerging Leader of the Year (Bronze) Award winner of the 2024 Women Changing the World Awards.

The Women Changing the World Awards presented by Oprah Winfrey’s all-time favourite guest, Dr. Tererai Trent, celebrate and recognize women achieving outstanding success in areas such as sustainability, humanitarian work, leadership, advocacy, tech, product development, education, health and innovation. The awards are designed to recognize the growing number of women who are leading the way in making the world a better place for us all and inspire other women to answer the call to take action.

Dr. Trent explains, “These exceptional women are here to awaken hearts, give permission to recapture dreams and inspire the women of the world to come together to forge a brighter path for all. The rising of women is the awakening of everybody.”

Samantha said she was excited to win bronze in her category in the 2024 Women Changing the World Awards.

Samantha says: “It can be challenging to create change in the world. My advice for others thinking about following their calling to make a difference is to invest in having an inner circle that celebrates and supports you, it’s one of the most important choices you’ll make to realise your highest potential & be fulfilled!.”

Samantha Brunskill of Samantha J. has received an Honorable Mention Award in the Coach of the Year category at the 2025 Women Changing the World Australia and the Pacific Awards.

These Awards celebrate and recognise women achieving outstanding success in areas such as sustainability, humanitarian work, leadership, advocacy, education, health, and innovation. The awards are designed to recognise the growing number of women who are leading the way in making the world a better place for us all and to inspire other women to make a difference.

About Samantha and her work:
Samantha Brunskill is the founder of The Illuminator Method, a premium coaching and brand strategy framework designed to help high-achieving founders, CEOs, and personal brands break income ceilings, align their identity with their business, and scale with impact. Her work focuses on combining identity, brand, and strategic leverage to transform ambitious leaders into category-defining authorities.

Why this work is important:
This work is so important because it empowers leaders to step fully into their potential, reclaim their time, and operate from a place of authority, influence, and clarity. Samantha’s approach is unique because it integrates high-performance mindset, brand strategy, and business leverage into one immersive experience, creating immediate and sustainable transformation for her clients.

Samantha Brunskill says:
"Receiving an Honorable Mention was incredibly validating — it reminds me that the work of lifting others to their next level isn’t just impactful; it’s visible and valued. Recognition like this fuels my commitment to help more women and leaders operate at their highest potential."

Driven by a desire to disrupt the status quo, Samantha pioneered her family’s purposeful empire in property development. For every lot sold, a contribution was made to mental health research in Australia, solidifying her stance as a philanthropic trailblazer. As a mental health ambassador, and philanthropist, Samantha sits on boards, advisors, and serves as a spokesperson, guiding business owners to build empires that not only stand out but also shape a better world.

Samantha’s journey began as a response to a missing piece in her own success story. She realized that true fulfillment came not just from financial achievements but from a higher purpose. Turning personal traumas, including her battle with mental health, into sources of wisdom, compassion, and power, Samantha illuminated the path to her highest potential. Her unique personal branding strategy is a testament to the strength found in vulnerability.

A key differentiator in Samantha’s approach is her luxury business model. It not only generates profits but shares them with causes that matter. This model, she believes, allows entrepreneurs to realize their highest potential without compromising integrity on the road to success. The Illuminator Method, developed by Samantha, is the only strategy that seamlessly merges spirituality, strategy, and self-expression, propelling clients to scale four times faster than conventional methods.

This book is for anyone who has ever felt afraid to try something new. Whether that be exploring new lands, embracing public speaking or following their dreams!

Sometimes fear wants us to lock up our talent and potential and keep it hidden away from anyone and everyone in a misguided attempt at keeping us safe.

Holding us back from sharing our voice, holding us back from sharing our ideas, holding us back from making new friends, exploring new lands, trying new career paths even following our dreams.

Holding us back and holding us back and holding us back, again and again, over and over in big and small ways, every day.

But what if we stopped letting that happen, What if we demanded that our fear stay small and silent and hidden instead? What if we believed in ourselves and our radiance and our brilliance and our magic? What if we stood up to fear, stepped over fear, silenced fear and then went ahead and followed our dreams anyway?

This book is a collection of inspiring stories from women around the world who have done just that! They’ve embraced the courage to silence their fear and are not afraid to realise their potential, follow their dreams and create a positive impact in the world.

Enabling residents to connect with each other is one of the top priorities for the team at Brunslea Park.

Brunslea Park General manager Samantha Brunskill is thrilled to see the central park development start in May. It is expected to be completed by August.

“At Brunslea Park we see the value in connection in neighbourhoods and the mental and physical benefits that it brings,” she said.

The central park at Brunslea Park will be located on Hazelwood Drive and covers 1.1 hectares or the size of around 15 house blocks.

It will be an all-ages park and include a barbecue area, flying fox, an excercise bike that charges phones and lighting.

“It will be the first state-of-the-art park in Wagga,” Miss Brunskill said.

“We looked at what other cities are doing during the design process.

“It will be a return to old neighbourhoods where people of all ages live in the same street and they can connect in these areas.”

The design process was 18 months in the making with three plans developed initially.

This feature is supported by: 

• Brunslea Park

Current residents at Brunslea Park voted on the designs and gave feedback which was included in the final design.

THROUGH the simple act of talking, a small support group is making a big impact in the Wagga community. 

The Embrace Mental Health meet will be up and running again from the first Thursday in February. 

The casual meet-up at Victory Memorial Gardens provides a casual and safe space for locals of all ages to catch up, chat, share their experiences with mental health disorders.

Sam Brunkskill’s bipolar diagnosis not only inspired her successful fundraising efforts, but also led to the creation of the support group in 2015. 

ALL eyes are on Forest Hill with the value of residential land shooting up by 18 per cent in past three years.

The latest NSW Valuer General's report revealed that Brunslea Park, a relatively new estate at Forest Hill, had some of the strongest land value growth between 2016 and 2019.

It was followed by Outer Central Wagga and Edward Street West, both of which saw a 16 per cent boost in the same time frame, with Tatton at 12 per cent and Lake Albert at 11 per cent.

Remax Elite director Dave Skow said in the past residents viewed Forest Hill as a separate town to Wagga.

But after several years, he said the Brunslea Park Corporation have done a "really good job" in educating people that Forest Hill is a suburb and a commutable distance.

"Wagga locals have always held a long standing view that Forest Hill is that place down the road and is removed," he said.

"It's just as easy a drive as some of the other suburbs such as Tatton, Bourkelands and Lloyd, which are always considered premiere suburban centres."

The suburbs of Ashmont and Tolland South West, however, showed a strong decline in value by 11 and 12 per cent respectively.

Mr Skow said the Valuer General's report is based on supply and demand and those suburbs are notorious for being at the lower end of the city's residential market.

Despite this, he said Ashmont and Tolland South West are still popular from an investment point of view.

"Rental yields are the strongest that Wagga has to offer, but growth rates are to that detriment," he said. "We can't have excellent growth and excellent yield because then everyone would be a millionaire, so something has to give ... and in some instances we will see a decline in land value."

The Rotary Club of Wagga Wagga is currently seeking nominations for the 2016 Rotary Shine Awards. The awards were established to celebrate and acknowledge the achievements and contribution that individuals with a disability make to our community through their vocation and/or a business that employs and supports a person with a disability. 

In 2015, The Rotary Shine Awards announced a second patron, Samantha Brunskill, General Manager of Brunslea Park. Ms Brunskill joins first patron Brian Kahlefeldt OAM, in support and promotion of these awards and is recognition by the Rotary Club of the importance to raise awareness of mental health as a disability from a business leader perspective as well as from a community perspective. 

The lifetime risk of suicide for people with bipolar disorder is 15% - this represents 12% of all Australian suicides. Around one-quarter of patients with bipolar disorder make a suicide attempt at some point in their lifetime. The impact on quality of life, principally during depressive episodes, is quite substantive and often impairs the capacity to get to work and, if at work, to function well.

“I am honoured to be a patron of the Rotary Shine Awards,” said Ms Brunskill. 

“This appointment by the Rotary Club is a great example of how when a business shines a light on an important and often unspoken issue in a community, it can have a much wider effect than becoming a philanthropic project. 

It’s a sad fact that one in four individuals suffer from mental illness, with the highest rate occurring in those aged 18-24 years. Someone close to you may be having a hard time, yet you may not have even realised.

In light of bringing awareness to mental illness, Charles Sturt University (CSU) and Riverina Bluebell recently presented ‘TOUGH and UP: How to Build Resilience”. The well-being and resilience information night encouraged people to seek assistance and get help for a friend, a loved one or for themselves.

Matthew Johnstone from the Black Dog Institute and Wagga Wagga local Samantha Brunskill were guest speakers of the night, reiterating the availability of services for people suffering from the illness.

Third year Vet Science student Ellen James attended the event and told us three messages she took from the night:

1. Recovery is possible, and the earlier you seek treatment the shorter the recovery period will be

2. There are lots of support services available, all you need to do is ask

3. And, it is okay not to be okay!

General Manager of Brunslea Park residential estate, Samantha Brunskill, has this week confirmed support for the proposed multipurpose Wagga Rail Trail.

Brunslea Park is Wagga’s most family friendly community, and has been developed on land that has been owned and farmed by the Brunskill family for over 100 years.

The proposed Wagga Rail Trail will run alongside Brunslea Park, giving residents ready access to the trail and making it easy for families to enjoy a healthy, active lifestyle.

“The trail concept aligns closely with our plans for Brunslea Park as a safe and family focused neighbourhood”, she said. “Families will be able to use it for exercise to commute to work or to get to our local shops, and it will provide a safe route for children to get to school or sport”, she said.

Wollundry members were given a virtual tour  on Tuesday of the proposed Wagga to Ladysmith Rail Trail.  Lisa Glastenbury assisted by Sam Brunskill presented the Wagga Rail Trail with a very informative and professional talk.

The Wagga Rail Trail will be a 20km sealed, off-road trail connecting Wagga Wagga CBD with the village of Ladysmith.  Following a gentle gradient through rural countryside, the trail will pass Governor’s Hill and Brunslea Park, Forest Hill and the RAAF Base, before crossing the picturesque Kyeamba Creek floodplain via historic rail bridges.

It will be a safe, traffic free trail for passive recreation that everyone can enjoy.  Starting at the Visitor Information Centre, the trail will mostly follow the disused Wagga to Tumbarumba railway line. Access to the trail will also be available at Equex, with links to the Kooringal Rd and Riverside cycle ways.