Meet The Team

Mary came to Gilded Lily in 2017 and has extensive experience of developing, managing and delivering community projects including Confidence-Building, Business Start-up, Climate Change and Mentoring programs to name a few. She is responsible for funding and business management at Gilded Lily, ensuring the sustainability of our work.

Mary is passionate about supporting & inspiring women and girls to follow their dreams and has completed certificated courses in COSCA counselling skills, Hypnotherapeutic practices and has a diploma in Training Design & Development.

Mary has worked in the third sector for over 20 years supporting people from multi-cultural backgrounds. She has also volunteered for Kidney Research, Caring Scotland and Motor Neuron Disease Scotland, taking aid to refugees in Lebanon, Calais and Dunkirk as well as parachuting from a plane, walking the West Highland Way and climbing Ben Nevis to raise funds.

One of the mighty women on Woman’s Hour’s 2020 Our Planet Power List, Zarina has dedicated herself to creating pathways for under-represented groups to work in environmental organisations. She is now researching sustainable behaviours within BAME communities in the UK for a PhD at the University of Manchester and is an advisor for Women’s Environmental Network, London.

Zarina has created spaces for marginalised women’s voices to be heard about climate issues, and her accolades include recognition by Edinburgh Science Institute as an inspirational woman who has made a significant impact in STEM featuring her in 2021’s festival. More recently Zarina received the coveted Emma Goldman Award for her feminist work on climate justice and inequalities.

Mary has extensive experience within the charity and voluntary sector, setting up and managing projects from the outset. Mary has supported several charitable organisations to develop strategies that include Legal Financial Strategies, Funding Strategies, Business Planning and Governance Development. Mary was the vice chairperson to a large youth football club with over 250 young people for over 20 years.

Jelina is a Human Rights Lawyer and is a Director / Partner of Berlow Rahman Hassan Ltd. She started her own firm whilst having kidney dialysis treatment in 2009. Throughout her legal career she has represented the most vulnerable in our society and fought for justice. Her legal motto is ‘for the good of the people, justice for all’. Since the age of 18 years old, Jelina has been a board member of many charity organisations in Scotland, such as Access Apna Ghar Housing Association and Glasgow Anti-racist Alliance. She continues to be a trustee of Positive Action in Housing, sharing her expertise and knowledge with them for over 20 years. More recently, she has become a patient Ambassador, as well as a Lay Advisor for Kidney Research UK, raising awareness amongst the BME communities. She became a member of Freedom50 (as a Bangladeshi diaspora), pushing the climate change agenda on behalf of Bangladesh and partaking in COP26 in Glasgow. Jelina brings a wealth of experience having worked with asylum seekers and refugees for over 20 years. She has won many accolades for her work over the years, and is passionate about using and sharing her knowledge, as well as her skills, to projects and causes that she believes in.

Aisha is a mum of 3 young children and lives in Govan. Before coming to the UK Aisha was Lecturer of Natural Sciences at the Government College Mirpur Azad Kashmir, Pakistan between 2009-2011 and volunteered with the Pakistan Trust for Blind People between 2006-2008. Aisha brings practical skills in arts & crafts and is proficient with software and social media platforms. She has volunteered as a parent coordinator and support worker at Pirie Park Primary School and is passionate about helping other women. Aisha joined the Board of Directors to give something back, drawing on the skills and experiences she has gained from the support she received at Gilded Lily.

Kam has worked in the 3rd sector for the past 12 years mainly in finance.  Kam joined the Gilded Lily team in 2019 and inspiring, encouraging and empowering women who attend Gilded Lily are key to Kams beliefs and role. Kam recognises success from the project when the women on the project flourish to their full potential.

Kam enjoys spending time with family and friends and values helping others, truth and equality are key aspects of living her life. Kam is keen to expand her creative side by learning from colleagues and women who attend Gilded Lily.

Heather joined the team in 2020 after having been involved with previous worksops and programs. Heather  finds a great sense of satisfaction from supporting the women to become creative and more self-confident.

Outside of Gilded Lily, Heather can be seen helping in the Pantry, weeding in the park, and on Friday nights is a Scout Leader. She believes that helping in the community is very important, and that everyone has a part to play, even the youngest members. But she is happiest taking the young people to Auchengillan, the Scouts Scotland Outdoor Centre, toasting marshmallows over the campfire.

Amanda first joined Gilded Lily as a volunteer in 2019 and joined the staff team in 2020. She manages all of Gilded Lily’s social media pages, promoting and publicising our work and has been instrumental in raising the profile of Gilded Lily in the community and throughout Scotland.

Amanda has developed and facilitated several programs at Gilded Lily and truly loves working with the women in the community, they never fail to lift her spirits and she hopes that she also does the same for them.

Outside of Gilded Lily, Amanda is a professional musician writing and performing her own music in bars and clubs around Glasgow.

Working at Gilded Lily has given Amanda a lot of amazing opportunities and experiences to develop & grow personally, which have increased her confidence greatly, as well as giving her memories she’ll cherish forever.

Heather H came to Gilded Lily in January 2022, through DWP’s Kickstarter Scheme.  During her time at Gilded Lily, she has been involved in both facilitation and delivery of various programs, as well as assisting in organising external and internal events.

Heather is passionate about building community and fighting isolation amongst women. She has volunteered with third sector organisations for the past 7 years, such as LGBT Youth Scotland, KidzEco, University of Glasgow Feminist Society and more. She is keen to use her current skills set to help in whatever aspect she can, and enjoys learning new skills.

Kim’s first love is always to create, paint and draw, yet somewhere in her adult life she lost that part & work took over. Art & creating brings Kim joy and she started  connected with it again after losing her mobility during covid which became her pain relief.

In 2018 she left her corporate world, to set up her own wellbeing business and in 2020 combined this with her creativity.  Kim started volunteering at Gilded Lily in 2018, she calls it her happy place and joined the staff team in 2022.

She is grateful for all the experiences in life that have brought her to this place and looks forward to wherever the journey takes her.

Barah came to us through the ‘Positive Vibes Changes lives’ programme at a time when she was at her lowest, after a pandemic which had taken its toll on her mental health. She came, sceptical that the programme would have ANY impact, but committed to take a small step to try and improve things.

PVCL was nothing short of inspirational! Her confidence grew as she started practicing and using the tools and tips learned on the course, she started to journal and rediscovered her love of walking and yoga. She also now felt ready for work and started to look for jobs that would ignite her passions; working with women of colour to achieve their potential and become more confident and happier in themselves.

Although hesitant at first, her new-found confidence helped her to apply for the post of Project Manager for our Women4Women program and she joined the team at Gilded Lily in May 2023.

She is passionate about helping women achieve and realise their dreams, and sharing the wonderful things she learned at Gilded Lily with others. In her spare time, Barah is training to be a yoga teacher and hopes to share her new skills with the women when she is fully qualified.