Selina Win Pe is of proud Indian-Burmese heritage, and she is ‘most proud’ to be called ‘Australian.’ 

She moved to Australia at the age of nine years. However, her connection to Australia dates back to her maternal grandfather who served in World War Two as a highly awarded Brigadier in the Indian Army, and was captured as a Prisoner of War and saved by our incredible, honorable, and brave Aussie Diggers. 

Selina is her beloved ‘father’s daughter’ to the absolute core. She is driven by his loving memory, and the adoration she has for both her parents who taught her about strength, courage, resilience, and tenacity.

Selina grew into a strong, loving, confident, and determined young woman who once had the world at her feet, a blossoming professional career, representing some of the world’s leading financial services brands, and she was well travelled.

But then, tragedy struck. It was beyond Selina’s comprehension. 

On December 15-16, 2014, the Lindt Café siege, at Sydney’s Martin Place, occurred over seventeen terrifying hours. Three lives were lost: Tori Johnson, Katrina Dawson, and a lone gunman. 

Selina was the longest held of eighteen hostages. The impact of the ordeal continues to impact her life. Grateful to have survived ‘the life-altering experience’ she has since embarked on a journey of healing, and she has invested deeply in her mental health, wellbeing, and self-care. 

Selina commenced her journey on March 9th, 2019. She had no preconceived ideas or plans. However, she had a deep desire to help others. She began by reaching out and connecting first-hand with the kind-hearted, welcoming, country mayors with whom she established warm and meaningful friendships right across her home state of NSW. She found herself in safe communities whose values aligned with her own. In country people and their surrounds, she found ‘home’ slowly regaining her confidence, sense of safety and trust.

Her new-found connections to Australian farming communities, and her deep respect and admiration for our farmers, is at the very heart of her mission to help bring communities from all spectrums and places together. In doing so, she has invested countless hours, and reached deep into her own pocket.

In 2020, Selina widened her advocacy to ‘support local.’ She continues to promote our invaluable interconnected small business communities, and their essential roles in the lifecycle of our foods, and she is passionate about spreading the word that it is the responsibility of all of us to sustain the longevity of Australian farming.

Selina’s love for her country is obvious. Her memoir is dedicated to the journey she has singlehandedly conceived, created, and built from absolutely nothing. She is not sponsored by any business, nor has asked anything of anyone, except for giving their strength and support.

She carries all country communities as symbols and marks of respect that connect her journey, and they are all embraced by her as being members of her ‘extended family’ who help to keep her safe. Her focus on her mental health and wellbeing, and her trust in those who provide her medical and psychological care, remain critical to her ongoing recovery.

With her endless capacity to love, Selina will expand her travel and enlarge her ‘family’ as she reaches across Australia in 2023 and beyond. And as she does, Selina will continue to grow from her experiences