After more than five decades in the spotlight, Marcia Hines knows what endures. It is not just the milestones or moments on stage. It is the people who showed up.
“When times are tough, you remember who was in your corner,” she says. “ I had great support from my mother for my passion to perform. She supported my career as singer and was very kind and understanding, because when I grew up the music industry, it wasn’t what it is now and deciding to be a singer was a very strange thing to do. So getting that support at 16 when I came here was what made me.”
From navigating the music industry as a young mother and building one of Australia’s most enduring careers, Hines’ journey has been shaped not only by talent and determination, but by encouragement, opportunity and connection.
The challenges of motherhood, and the impact of judgement
For Hines, motherhood has always been central to her experience. Becoming a parent at a young age, she understands the weight of responsibility that can come with raising a child while still finding your own way.
“Sometimes it is as simple as someone believing in you before you fully believe in yourself. That can change everything.”
She reflects on how easily mothers can be judged, particularly when life does not follow a straightforward path. “I became a mum very young, and I know what it feels like to be judged or underestimated,” she says. “A lot of women carry that. You don’t always see what someone has been through, but you can choose how you show up for them.”
It is this belief in showing up for others that she will bring to this year’s Odyssey Women’s Lunch, raising funds for families impacted by alcohol and other drug dependence.
“When I hear the stories of women who are receiving support at Odyssey House NSW, and what they have endured in their lives, it’s impossible not to feel deep empathy,” she says. “For many, their life experiences have shaped how they have coped and they may have never been given the opportunity to access the support they needed.”
Why supporting families matters
Each year, Odyssey House NSW supports thousands of people overcoming addiction. In the past year alone, they received more than 7,900 enquiries, with 3,617 people accessing support. Behind each number is a person, a family, and a broader community.
Parents experiencing alcohol and other drug dependence often face complex challenges alongside their parenting responsibilities. Many of the mothers who come into Odyssey’s Family Recovery Centre are navigating experiences of trauma, family violence, housing instability and stigma, often compounded by the expectation to hold everything together.
Odyssey’s Family Recovery Centre offers a different approach. It provides a safe, family-friendly environment where parents and children can live together during recovery, supporting children’s wellbeing while parents build confidence and strengthen their parenting skills.
For Carmel Tebbutt, Chief Executive Officer of Odyssey House NSW and former Deputy Premier of New South Wales, this model is critical.
“Many of the parents we support have experienced significant challenges in their own lives,” she says. “Too often, they are defined by their most difficult moments, rather than being supported to move forward.
Our Family Recovery Centre provides the opportunity to break the intergenerational cycle that often accompanies addiction. Parents undertake the treatment program and are supported with their parenting skills while their children stay onsite, creating a different future. That takes courage, and it requires an environment where people feel safe, not judged.”
At the centre, recovery happens alongside parenting.
“Keeping families together during treatment creates stability for children and parents can build confidence and strengthen those bonds in real time,” Tebbutt says. “It changes what recovery can look like, not just for the individual, but for the whole family.”
A community coming together
This year marks the 15th anniversary of the Odyssey Women’s Lunch, which has raised millions of dollars to support families working to rebuild their lives.
The event brings together leaders from across business, community and public life, united by a shared purpose: to stand alongside families navigating some of life’s most complex challenges.
For Hines, that sense of collective effort is what matters most.
“I’ve always believed in lifting others up,” she says. “You never really know what someone has been through or what they’re carrying. Sometimes what people need most is understanding, not judgement.”
It is a message that sits at the heart of the event, and one that continues to resonate far beyond the room.
Join Marcia at Odyssey Women’s Lunch on Thursday 21st May at the Sheraton Hyde Park Sydney:
https://odysseyhouse.com.au/get-involved/events/odyssey-womens-lunch/
Use the code WOMENS AGENDAto receive $20 off your ticket.