Demi Tsaroumis has spent her life drawn to people's stories, moving through careers in tourism, government, and healthcare before finding her way into work she never imagined for herself: supporting women and children who have survived family and domestic violence. Growing up in a dysfunctional family made the calling confronting at first. She fought against it, then slowly came to understand that the work was not about her. It was about others. Today she works for a Melbourne-based organisation whose mission is to end homelessness, listening, advocating, and showing up with the kind of steadiness that only comes from someone who has done her own hard work. She calls herself a skilled helper. Someone who did not turn away.

Her message to other women: always ask for help when you need it.

Find Demi on Instagram at @demikleo