Kim Sampson (President & Acting Treasurer)
The majority of Kim Sampson’s professional career has been in the health, science and community services sectors.
He joined the Australia-Vietnam Friendship Society (AVFS) in 2010 as the inaugural treasurer of the newly established entity which succeeded the Australia-Vietnam Society (AVS). In 2013 he was elected President and has remained in that role ever since. He is presently also the Acting Treasurer, until such time as a suitable replacement can be found.
In 2024, Kim became a Director of the Australian General Practice Network (AGPN), an organisation with its headquarters in Adelaide. In 2025, he became Director and Treasurer of the Asia-Pacific Alliance for the Control of Influenza (APACI), an organisation based in Hong Kong. He was previously APACI’s Executive Director, establishing the inaugural role in 2011, and remaining in that role until he became a director in 2025.
Kim was also the Chief Executive Officer of the Immunisation Coalition in Australia, having commenced in 2008 as their first CEO, and retiring in 2024.
Kim started his health administration career in Melbourne more than 40 years ago. He began as the finance manager for the Baker Medical Research Institute, with subsequent management roles in the Australian Brain Foundation, Southern Health Hospital Network, Monash Institute for Neurological Diseases, and Neurosciences Victoria. He was also an educator for the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons training program.
Kim lives with his wife in Melbourne and is a doting grandfather. He has a keen interest in music, having been a professional musician in his earlier life, and continues to record music in a studio he built at his home. He is also a wine collector.
Nicole Borzillo (Vice President)
Marianne O’Reilly (Secretary)
B.Sc (HKUST) M.Sc (HKUST)
Marianne O’Reilly was born and raised in Hong Kong, where she completed her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Biotechnology.
Marianne currently serves as Communications Manager for the Immunisation Coalition and the Asia Pacific Alliance for the Control of Influenza (APACI). Across these roles, she manages newsletters, media bulletins, website content, public health campaigns and educational initiatives.
At AVFS, Marianne is responsible for the weekly media bulletin, website upkeep and supporting the organisation of community activities aimed at strengthening ties between Australia and Vietnam.
In 2021, Marianne founded Hong Kong’s first vegan fried chicken business made out of lion’s mane mushroom. After moving to Australia in 2022, Marianne kept Shroomi alive by starting a vegan food platform, @shroomi.co on Tiktok and Instagram, where she shares her passion for Melbourne’s vegan scene.
Marianne has travelled to Hanoi, Hoi An and Ho Chi Minh City, and hopes to continue exploring Vietnam in the years ahead. Having become engaged in Vietnam, the country holds a special place in her heart. She deeply admires the hospitality, resilience and warmth of the Vietnamese people, as well as the richness and vibrancy of Vietnamese cuisine.
Serge Zorino (Assistant Secretary)
B.Ec (UWA) M.Com (UNSW)
Sergio (Serge) Zorino has had a distinguished 40-year career in Industrial Relations and Occupational Health and Safety.
He established ATS Consulting during the Sydney Olympic Games and practised as a safety auditor and practitioner in safety risk management systems across New South Wales. Throughout his career, Serge conducted complex workplace incident investigations, prepared expert safety reports, and assisted legal teams in prosecuting workers’ claims involving negligent civil liability in serious workplace injury cases.
Serge has been a committed trade union activist, contributing to major industrial and social advances including the Green Bans movement of the late 1970s, campaigns for shorter working hours and superannuation in the 1980s, and workplace safety initiatives in the 1990s. From a young age, he has also been actively involved in advocating for migrant worker rights and combating racism in the workplace, leading efforts to eliminate discrimination.
Serge’s parents migrated from northern Italy to Western Australia in the early 1950s, where he developed a lifelong love of sport, particularly AFL, and the Australian outdoors.
He first became associated with the Australia Vietnam Society (now the Australia Vietnam Friendship Society, AVFS) in the mid-1980s and early 1990s in Newcastle, NSW. During this time, the Hunter Health community and participating unions organised shipments of much-needed medical supplies from regional hospitals to Vietnam.
After rejoining AVFS in August 2022 in Melbourne, Serge has continued to actively support initiatives aimed at strengthening understanding and friendship between the peoples of Australia and Vietnam.
Ron Hall (Public Officer)
Ron was a foundation member of the Australia Vietnam Society in South Australia from 1975 to 1990 and has continued as an active member of the Australia Vietnam Friendship Society (AVFS) ever since. During this time, he was involved in coordinating exchange programs for Vietnamese government officials, primarily in the areas of social services and English language education.
Ron served as Secretary from 1990 to 2000, contributing significantly to the organisation’s administration and development.
A former Senior Lecturer in English as a Second Language (ESL) at TAFE, Ron specialised in ESL and EFL teaching and training. Now retired, he has taught in Vietnam on multiple occasions and has visited the country approximately eight times, travelling extensively throughout the regions.
Together with Bev, Ron adopted a boy born in Vietnam in 1974 who was living with the effects of polio. He passed away in January 2024. Ron and Bev also raised his three children.
Dr Bev Hall
PhD (Education)
Dr Bev Hall was a foundation member of the Australia Vietnam Society in South Australia from 1975 to 1990 and remains an ongoing member of the Australia Vietnam Friendship Society (AVFS).
She served as Secretary from 1980 to 1990 and played a key role in facilitating exchange programs for Vietnamese government officials, particularly in social services and English language education.
Bev was part of the first Western delegation to Vietnam in 1976–77, a group of 19 predominantly education professionals, marking an important early stage of post-war educational engagement.
Now retired, Bev holds a PhD in Education and conducted research in Vietnam focused on language teaching for pre-school Vietnamese children. She has taught in Vietnam and visited approximately eight times, travelling widely across the country.
Together with Ron, she adopted a Vietnamese-born son in 1980 and later raised his three children. He passed away in January 2024.
Paul Noack
Paul is a long-standing member of the Australia Vietnam Friendship Society (AVFS) and has served the organisation as both President and Vice President, contributing significant leadership and guidance over many years.
Now retired, Paul has had a distinguished career in the union movement, serving as a Union Official with the Australian Workers’ Union (AWU), the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU), and the Vehicle Builders Employees’ Federation (VBEF). He also held governance roles as a Director of the Dust Diseases Board and the WorkCover Board, advocating for worker health, safety, and compensation.
Paul has been actively involved in local government, serving as an elected councillor for both Salisbury and Parramatta Councils.
He currently resides in Wentworth Point and continues his community involvement as a Board member of the Wentworth Point Titans Sports Club.