Catherine Phillips (Chair)

Catherine Phillips represents the Northern Territory on the national board of Crime Stoppers Australia and is the Chairperson of Crime Stoppers Northern Territory.

Until 2014, when the business was sold, Catherine was part owner and Dealer Principal of an Automotive Dealership in Darwin, a position she held for 13 years.  Since the sale Catherine has worked part-time as a Business Development Consultant.  After working in small business for 17 years, firstly in a micro training and business development business and then in the dealership, Catherine is revelling in the opportunity for extended travel and the luxury of time to spend with family and friends.

Catherine was the first female president of the Motor Trades Association (NT), a role she held for six years.  During this period she was a Director of the Motor Trades Association of Australia and a founding Director of the Australia Motor Industry Federation.

Married since 1982, Catherine has two grown children and two wonderful grandchildren. 

Helen Summers (Deputy Chairperson)

Helen has have been in private practice in Darwin for 17 years, with eight visiting clinics in regional and remote areas across  1500 sq km of the Top End, including Katherine, Nhulunbuy, Jabiru (Kakadu); Adelaide River, Batchelor; and Arnhemland homelands, as well as Danila Dilba in Darwin CBD and Saltbush, Stringybark at Darwin Rehabilitation Drug and Alcohol Centre . Clinics are supported with donated ready-mades, sunglasses and low cost glasses from Essilor Vision Foundation.

Helen has an interest in dry eye and anterior eye disease, glaucoma and macula management, contact lenses, children’s vision, neuro-optometry conditions and indigenous health.

The practice is in partnership with Flinders University and hosts final year students for training, mentoring.

In April 2014 the practice relocated to The Avenue, Parap; and opened as Australia’s flagship Nikon concept practice.

Deborah Hall (Treasurer)

Dr Debbie Hall resides in Darwin and is active in both the community and business sectors where she has a wide network of associates.

Growing up on a Zimbabwean farm and an active volunteer her whole life, Debbie has lived and worked in a range of settings across Africa and Papua New Guinea before coming to Australia more than 10 years ago. She has served on a number of management committees for local associations in the past and is currently a member of the NT Business Council executive and of the local off road cyclists club (DORC) committee.

Debbie is delighted to serve on the Crime Stoppers NT Board, looking forward to increasing community awareness and use of this important resource. 

Dennis Hart

Dennis Hart arrived in Darwin in 1969 and worked in the automotive industry until 1972, when he joined the Northern Territory Police Force as a public servant.
Immediately after Cyclone Tracey Dennis commenced his police training in Adelaide. Dennis remained with the police for over 20 years; serving a short time in uniform before being transferred into the Criminal Investigation Branch. Over the ensuing years Dennis attained the rank of A/Superintendent and was either the lead or support investigator in a number of high profile Northern Territory cases involving drug plantations, murder, fraud and major crime investigations. After spending a number of years in the drug squad, Dennis was made Officer in Charge of that unit and then later went on to become the Officer in Charge of the Criminal Investigation Branch.
For the last 21 years Dennis has been employed by Paspaley Pearling Coy as their Security Manager. During that time Dennis has travelled extensively across the world either coordinating major pearl auctions, providing safe-hand delivery for pearls, or accompanying the company principals on major business trips. In more recent times Dennis has turned his hand to research and has been working on a project to deliver exotic pearl meat to restaurants globally. This has involved extensive consultation with a range of stakeholders including company directors, scientists, DFAT and other businesses that have achieved export and supply chain accreditation for other seafoods.
Now that his overseas travel is down to three or four trips a year Dennis is looking forward to contributing to the NT community through Crime Stoppers Northern Territory.
In his spare time Dennis enjoys fishing the Peron Islands with his two daughters and wife and dabbles in carpentry, welding, mechanical repairs and basically anything that needs fixing! The last project was to rebuild a tractor from the ground up and Dennis is now waiting for the next project to appear.