Judith Anne Adams (née Bird; 11 April 1943 – 31 March 2012) was a New Zealand-born

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

n politician, midwife, nurse, and farmer, who served as a member of the

Australian Senate The Senate is the upper house of the Bicameralism, bicameral Parliament of Australia, the lower house being the Australian House of Representatives, House of Representatives. The powers, role and composition of the Senate are set out in Chap ...

between 2005 and 2012, representing the

state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

Biography

Adams was born in Picton,

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

, and was a trained nurse and midwife experienced in health care policy, with a diploma in Operating Theatre Nursing. She joined the New Zealand Territorial Army as a nursing sister in 1963, and was later posted to Vietnam as a civilian nurse under the

Colombo Plan The Colombo Plan is a regional intergovernmental organization that began operations on 1 July 1951. The organization was conceived at an international conference, The Commonwealth Conference on Foreign Affairs held in Colombo, Ceylon (now Sri ...

during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

. Adams emigrated to Australia in 1968, and was employed by the Medical Department of Western Australia as a member of the Emergency Nursing Service, which involved postings to regional

n towns. She met her future husband, Gordon Adams, a pilot for the

Royal Flying Doctor Service The Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS), commonly known as the Flying Doctor, is an aeromedical retrieval service in Australia and the largest of its kind in the world. It is a non-profit organisation that provides urgent and emergency medica ...

, while serving in Meekatharra, whom she married in 1970. The couple leased a farm at Quindanning before purchasing a farm at Kojonup in 1972. While in

, she served as a councillor of the Healthcare Association of Western Australia, the Australian Healthcare Association, and the National Rural Health Alliance, and was a member of the Rural Health Reference Group. She was also a member of the State Executive of the

Liberal Party of Australia The Liberal Party of Australia (LP) is the prominent centre-right political party in Australia. It is considered one of the two major parties in Australian politics, the other being the Australian Labor Party (ALP). The Liberal Party was fo ...

between 2000 and 2004. Gordon died in 2008. At the

2001 Western Australian state election Elections were held in the state of Western Australia on 10 February 2001 to elect all 57 members to the Legislative Assembly and all 34 members to the Legislative Council. The two-term Liberal– National coalition government, led by Premier ...

, Adams was a

candidate A candidate, or nominee, is a prospective recipient of an award or honor, or a person seeking or being considered for some kind of position. For example, one can be a candidate for membership in a group (sociology), group or election to an offic ...

for the seat of Wagin, but was defeated by Terry Waldron. Adams was elected to the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

at the 2004 federal election, with her term commencing on 1 July 2005, becoming the second-oldest woman to enter Australian parliament. During her period in parliament, she served as deputy opposition

whip A whip is a blunt weapon or implement used in a striking motion to create sound or pain. Whips can be used for flagellation against humans or animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain, or be used as an audible cue thro ...

, and was involved in securing changes to wheat laws and defence force policy. Adams had been diagnosed with first-stage

breast cancer Breast cancer is a cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a Breast lump, lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, Milk-rejection sign, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipp ...

in 1998, and secondary breast cancer in 2008.A passionate advocate for women
– Breast Cancer Network of Australia. Retrieved 31 March 2012. She died from the disease at Kalamunda Hospital in March 2012, aged 68. The

Parliament of Western Australia The Parliament of Western Australia is the bicameralism, bicameral legislature of the Australian states and territories of Australia, state of Western Australia, which constitutes the legislative branch of the state's political system. The parl ...

appointed

Dean Smith Dean Edwards Smith (February 28, 1931 – February 7, 2015) was an American men's college basketball Coach (basketball), head coach. Called a "coaching legend" by the Basketball Hall of Fame, he coached for 36 years at the University of North C ...

on 2 May 2012 to Adams' Senate vacancy.

References

External links

Judith Adams HomepageJudith Adams, Senate Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Adams, Judith 1943 births 2012 deaths 20th-century Australian farmers 20th-century New Zealand farmers 21st-century Australian farmers 20th-century New Zealand women farmers Female wartime nurses Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Australia Members of the Australian Senate for Western Australia New Zealand emigrants to Australia Naturalised citizens of Australia New Zealand midwives New Zealand nurses People from Kojonup, Western Australia People from Picton, New Zealand Women members of the Australian Senate Australian midwives Vietnam War nurses Women in the Vietnam War Australian women nurses Australian nurses New Zealand women nurses 21st-century Australian politicians 21st-century Australian women politicians 21st-century Australian women farmers 20th-century Australian women farmers Deaths from breast cancer in Australia Deaths from cancer in Western Australia

Biography

See also

References

External links