Helen Sham-Ho

Helen Wai-Har Sham-Ho OAM (Chinese: 何沈慧霞; pinyin: Hé Shěn Huìxiá) (born 9 September 1943) is a former Hong Kong-born Australian politician.

Helen Sham-Ho
何沈慧霞
Member of the New South Wales Legislative Council
In office
19 March 1988 (1988-03-19) – 28 February 2003 (2003-02-28)
Personal details
Born (1943-09-09) 9 September 1943
NationalityAustralian
Political partyIndependent (1998–present)
Other political
affiliations		Liberal Party (1982–1998)

Early life and education

Of Bao'an Hakka ancestry, Sham-Ho was born in Hong Kong. She migrated to Australia in 1961.

She earned a Bachelor of Arts and a Diploma of Social Work from the University of Sydney, graduating in 1967,[1] and earned an LL.B. at Macquarie University.[2]

Her first marriage produced two daughters; her second marriage was to Robert Ho on 15 December 1987. In 1982, she had joined the Epping Branch of the Liberal Party.[3]

Political career

In 1988, she was elected to the New South Wales Legislative Council for the Liberal Party. She was the first Chinese to be elected to an Australian parliament. She continued as a Liberal MLC until 1998, when she resigned from the party to sit as an independent. She retired before the 2003 election.[3]

In 1992, she became one of the eminent Australians serving on the original Foundation Council of Australians for Constitutional Monarchy.

Community service

Since her retirement she has been involved in various fund-raising activities in her local community.[4]

References
  1. "2012 Australia Day Honours". The University of Sydney. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  2. "Chris Lilley and His Aussie Heroes - Macquarie University". Archived from the original on 25 April 2012. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  3. "The Hon. Helen Wai-Har Sham-Ho (1943– )". Former members of the Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 13 May 2019.
  4. Belongings: Post World War 2 migration memories & journeys Archived 4 November 2010 at the Wayback Machine Andrea Fernandes, NSW Migration Heritage Centre, 2008.
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