Vale Aunty Uma

03 Apr 2025

It is with great sadness that we share the passing of beloved writer, actor, director, and veteran Story Factory volunteer Aunty Uma Kali Shakti.

Aunty Uma volunteered with us from 2012, and was often in our Redfern centre up to five days per week. She contributed well over 1000 hours of her time which was then more than any other volunteer.

Aunty Uma will be remembered for her enormous heart. She was the very embodiment of our value that young people come first, and was a tireless advocate for our students’ voices to be heard. She shaped so much of the volunteer experience, our workshops, and the commitment Story Factory has to our young writers.

Many of our newer volunteers would not have had the honour of meeting Aunty Uma, as extended illness prevented her from joining us over the past few years. However, you may know her from our Aunty Uma Volunteer of the Year award. She initiated this recognition in 2017, after being gifted the statue that sits atop the award by a close friend. The image of an adult swinging a laughing child around reminded her of the crucial supporting role volunteers have at Story Factory, and inspired her to donate it to recognise and celebrate those volunteers who, like her, had contributed many hours and lots of heart.

When she was actively volunteering, if Uma wasn’t in workshops, laughing boisterously with giggling primary school students or once-sullen but now also giggling high school boys, she was sitting at our retail counter calling out to people on the street to come in and buy some student work.

She supported countless new volunteers when they began, mentoring them and offering both sound advice and a listening ear for their challenges. She was also a fantastic motivator in encouraging even the shyest of volunteers to get more involved in a workshop. She was always the first to call out an answer or loudly sing the praises of the students at her table.

You always knew where you stood with Aunty Uma. If she was unhappy with you, would hear about it – as our Storyteller Russ says, she loved to “growl you”. She thrived in argument but never held a grudge, and could be debating furiously with you one minute, then laughing and asking you for a coffee the next. And heaven forbid you ever got in the way of her mobility scooter — she drove that beast with all the passion and fervour she displayed in her workshops.

Vale Aunty Uma, you will be sorely missed, and never forgotten.