Toni virtually started her career with charity work in Birmingham UK, going along with her dad when he performed at Hospitals, Nursing Homes and even the Winson Green Prison.
She performed on many charity shows in the UK and, the very first show she presented in Sydney was a fundraiser at Coogee Randwick RSL Club, which was a great opportunity to show what ‘the new kid on the block’ could do. Female comics in the early seventies were few and far between, so Toni was very warmly welcomed into Aussie show biz circles.
She has been a professional entertainer for well over 60 years, arriving in Australia from the UK in 1972, with an impressive record of rave reviews from T.V., Club, Theatre and Cabaret venues worldwide. Over the years, Toni has supported some of the worlds brightest stars: The Seekers, Tom Jones, Englebert Humperdinck, Morcambe & Wise, Val Doonican, Dave Allen, Lulu, Paul Hogan etc, and from the USA Bill Haley, Billy Eckstein, Jose Feliciano and many more.
In addition to her talents as a comedienne, singer and musician, she is also a very competent theatre restaurant performer, actress and show producer. In the early eighties, Toni produced and starred at the Golden Garter Theatre Restaurant where her show ran for over a year and she was the first to introduce the concept of Theatre Restaurant to registered Clubs, the most popular of her shows being ‘The Best O’ Bloomin’ British’ and ‘Oktoberfest’ which ran successfully for 26 years.
From 1987 to 1989 she produced her own Theatre Restaurant on Sydney Harbour, The Port Jackson Showboat. Then, in 1990, for over 5 years, 7 nights a week, she was producer and featured performer in The Jolly Swagman Show at the Argyle Tavern and Lowenbrau Keller at the Rocks.
Over the years Toni has also provided work for many other performers especially now, through her own business “Aunty Molly’s Seniors Entertainment Events” which she has hosted and featured A1 performers for seniors’ lunchtime theatre restaurant over three decades.
Four times nominee, in 1998 Toni was honoured with the prestigious John Campbell Fellowship ‘Mo’ Award for her work with the founding of ALVA, services to the Australian variety industry and for her endless charity work. Earlier she had also been nominated for inclusion in the ‘Australian Who’s Who of Women’ (1985) and subsequently the ‘World Who’s Who of Women’ (1986) and
in the same year was included in the ‘International Directory of Distinguished Leadership’.
Toni has personally been responsible for producing many fund raising shows and has generated well over a million dollars for numerous Charities, including, CanTeen, The Leukaemia Foundation, The Red Cross, The Royal Institute for Deaf & Blind Children, Cancer Research, Children’s Medical Research, Cerebral Palsy Foundation, Legacy, The Humour Foundation (Clown Doctors) and
Children’s Oncology Units at the old Camperdown and Westmead Hospitals, to name but a few.
More recently, in her work through Rotary International and her own Club, The Rotary Club of Warners Bay, Toni continues to help others by raising funds for needy people and various causes. She admits it’s what she does best and what she loves to do most.

Lisa Crouch is considered by her fans and peers to be one of the most unique “Powerhouse” entertainers in the industry. She has an amazing vocal style, energy to burn and a natural, infectious sense of humour. Lisa is incredibly down to earth and it is this part of her personality that audiences love.  Lisa began her career as a classical singer at Newcastle Conservatorium of Music and has gone on to perform in musical theatre, cabaret shows, jingles, and cruise liners. She has toured nationally and internationally with her solo cabaret show.  Lisa is one of Australia’s finest female vocal entertainers and her outstanding talent has been recognised by the Entertainment Industry at a variety of events. Lisa is a multi-award winning entertainer who regularly performs her production show “Powerhouse Divas” and her new show, “Experience the Divine – An Evening with Bette Midler”.  She also performs with her six piece retro band “Dig This” and her musical duo “Just Jammin”.

Despite Lisa’s busy schedule, she still finds time to be an active member of ALVA. Since joining in 2004, Lisa went from committee member to Vice President fairly quickly. She loves to help and you will often find her doing everything from picking up tables to welcoming guests at a function. Lisa can be relied upon to help in any situation. She has been Vice President since 2006.

Kerri Lacey is a multi award winning entertainer with a number of MO Awards to her credit. Kerri trained at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music and has a Masters in Performance on Bassoon. Kerri not only performs in the duo Just Jammin’, singing and playing keyboards, but she also performs in the 6 piece band “Dig This”, and is a member of the cast for a variety of Production shows where she shows her talent in Drama and comedy. Kerri is also a Secondary Music Teacher currently working at Kirrawee High School. It is here that she uses her extensive knowledge of the entertainment industry to assist the up and coming young performers to achieve their goals. She also owns Klerrisa Custom Music, which is an educational portal designed to help music teachers and students here in Australia and around the world. And to top it off, she is also a photographer who has had her work recognised globally.

When Kerri is not engaging in all of these activities, she is working on and for ALVA. She started on the committee in 2004 when Maria Venuti was President. She has then supported the current committee as Treasurer from 2005 – 2014 and from 2015 to 2022 as Secretary.  

Gayle has been an active member of ALVA since 2003. She started dancing professionally in 1968, taught dancing from 1976, and specialises in treating people with disabilities and spinal dysfunction through Pilates, massage and vibration training.  Gayle has over 30 years experience in the fitness industry, and in that time has been able to provide rehabilitation and core strengthening work to literally thousands of clients.  Gayle has the ability to give individual attention to a class of varying ages and stages, and makes you feel completely comfortable with your own abilities. She has an extensive comprehension of physical abilities & limitations, and is able to tailor exercises in a group to accommodate any problems.Her enthusiasm and encouragement enable her to be an integral member of the ALVA Committee. Gayle put her hand up to be the Treasurer in 2015 and has not looked back. She is usually the first person you see at the function and always with a smiling face and quick wit. In 2020, Gayle moved back into a committee role. 

Pat Scroope was one of the original Charter members and has been involved with ALVA for most of her life. The wife of Australian Actor Doug Scroope, Pat has been an incredibly active in many of the committee positions over the years. A bookkeeper by trade, it didn’t take long for Pat to become the Treasurer. Over the years, Pat has juggled full time employment along with being Treasurer, Membership Manager and sometimes Secretary of this very busy charity. Pat has always been involved in ALVA’s Benevolence. In 2005, the committee, recognising the huge work load of the Treasurer’s position, decided to divide the job between herself and another committee member. It was at this time that Pat started training Kerri in her role as Treasurer, whilst she continued to work with the many benevolent cases. Pat returned to the Treasurer’s position in 2020 and has continued to tirelessly manage both the Treasurer and Benevolent Treasurer’s role. She is also the person in charge of our properties and investments. 

 Pat keeps everyone on the committee on their toes, making sure the processes for ALVA are in good working order. She reminds us of our public obligations and ensures that ALVA has enough funds to help whoever may need assistance.