Jean is a Wilinggin woman from Karunjie Station on the Gibb River Road. She has lived and worked in Wyndham in the East Kimberley region since the 1960s. Jean worked as an Aboriginal teaching assistant for over 20 years, most recently with pre-primary aged children at St. Joseph's School in Wyndham.
Jean has held directorships with Ngnowar Aerwah Aboriginal Corporation in Wyndham, which provides alcohol and other drug treatment and rehabilitation programs to community members and is a current member of the Wyndham advisory group.