The Myer Foundation is a major Australian philanthropic organisation.
26-623: The Sidney Myer Charitable Trust was established by the will of Sidney Myer , who died in 1934, leaving a portion of his estate for the benefit of the community. Myer's will was proved at £922,000. The most famous philanthropic funding by the Sidney Myer Fund was for the construction of the Sidney Myer Music Bowl in the Kings Domain, Melbourne in 1958, which is named in his honour. In 1959, The Myer Foundation
52-617: A few hundred metres from his home at 'Cranlana', 62 Clendon Road, Toorak on 5 September 1934. The cause of death was given as congestive heart failure. Myer's gravesite, a sepulchre for the reception of urns of ashes, is in Box Hill Public Cemetery in Melbourne. Also interred in the tomb are Dame Merlyn Myer , and Ken Myer and his wife, Yasuko, who perished together in a light aircraft crash in Alaska in 1992. The grave
78-465: A small drapery shop in Bendigo . This proving to be quite successful, Myer took his goods, stockings, laces, etc., from door to door, and, in spite of knowing little English, sold his wares. He then bought a cart and travelled through country towns. The business was later moved to Pall Mall, Bendigo, where it prospered, other shops were added, and later the Bendigo business of Craig Williamson and Thomas
104-908: Is Vice-President of the Governance Committee, and a member of the Social Justice Committee, the Water Committee and the Environment Grant Making Committee. She represents The Myer Foundation as a council member of the organisation Our Community, and is a board member of Australians for Just Refugee Programs. A member of Philanthropy Australia, Joanna Baevski is also a supporter of the Victorian Women's Trust. Myer collapsed and died in Woorigoleen Road, Toorak ,
130-590: Is a minor street and thoroughfare in the Melbourne central business district of Victoria, Australia . The laneway runs east–west from Spring Street to Spencer Street in-between Flinders and Collins streets. Originally laid out as part of the Hoddle Grid in 1837, the laneway was once the centre of Melbourne's rag trade and is still home to boutique designers and high-end retailers including Chanel , now perched alongside numerous upscale hotels like
156-705: Is listed on the Victorian Heritage Register . A violinist who enjoyed music, Sidney Myer established free, open-air concerts with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra in 1929, which were always well attended by Melburnians. During the depression of the 1930s , Myer felt a responsibility to contribute something to the community that had assisted him in achieving business success and a personal fortune. Rather than terminate employment of workers in his Department Store, all staff, including himself, had their wages cut. Relief work
182-619: The Collins Street businesses of T. Webb and Sons, china importers, and W. H. Rocke and Company, house furnishers, were bought and transferred to the Bourke-street building. A public company had in the meantime been formed which by 1934 had a paid-up capital of nearly £2,500,000. A controlling interest in Marshall's Limited of Adelaide was also acquired. The company was then employing 5,300 people with medical and nursing aid for
208-453: The W Hotel Melbourne and Adelphi Hotel, loft apartments , cafes and bars. Many historic buildings are found on Flinders Lane with a history of strict height limits helping to preserve the buildings from redevelopment. Despite the loss of some significant buildings over time, it is still known for its SoHo atmosphere and chic, well-preserved historic buildings. In the 1880s, large soft-goods import warehouses established Flinders Lane as
234-530: The 100th fellowship and hit a total of A$ 16m . Each of the annual fellowships is awarded to an individual, with no restrictions or required outcomes necessary. From 2011 to 2022, the fellowships were each worth A$ 160,000. In 2023, the value increased to A$ 200,000. The fellowships are tax-free and paid over two years, over which time it is expected that the recipients largely remain in Australia. Mid-career Australian artists, arts managers, and "thought leaders" in
260-533: The Myer family involved in the governance of the foundation and fund include: Sidney Myer Performing Arts Awards were created by the Sidney Myer Fund trustees in 1984, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the death of Sidney Myer. As of 2022 there are three awards, given annually: an Individual Award ( A$ 60,000 ), a Group Award ( A$ 90,000 ) and a Facilitator's Prize ( A$ 25,000 ). The Sidney Myer Creative Fellowships have been awarded since 2011, and in 2022 awarded
286-533: The Sidney Myer Fund, to continue the tradition of philanthropy begun by its founder. The most famous philanthropic funding was for the construction of the Sidney Myer Music Bowl in the Kings Domain , Melbourne in 1958, which is named in his honour. He is also the namesake for the Sidney Myer Asia Centre building at the University of Melbourne . Flinders Lane Flinders Lane
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#1732802535675312-470: The Sydney Hordern retailing family on 15 December 1955, thus linking two of Australia's wealthiest families. Sidney Baillieu Myer and Sarah Hordern had three children: Sid Myer , Rupert Myer and Samantha Hordern Ballieau AM, nee Myer, formerly Bartlett. One of Myer's granddaughters, Joanna Baevski (the only daughter of Kenneth and Prue (née Boyd) Myer) is a Director of The Myer Foundation. She
338-994: The United States to study retailing. While there he divorced Hannah in Reno, Nevada , although the divorce was not recognised under Australian law. While in Nevada, Myer also converted to Christianity. As Darrel Paproth notes, however, this was also "the culmination of Lee Neil 's witness to him over the years of their friendship and working together." On 8 January 1920, Myer married (Margery) Merlyn Baillieu (later Dame Merlyn Myer) , on her 20th birthday. They had two daughters and two sons: Kenneth AC (1 March 1921 – 30 July 1992), Neilma (7 November 1922 – 15 June 2015, later Neilma Gantner ), Sidney Baillieu Myer AC (11 January 1926 – 23 January 2022), and Marigold Merlyn Baillieu Myer (Lady Southey AC ) (born 2 May 1928). Merlyn traveled to San Francisco, California for
364-699: The birth of each of their four children to ensure they would be considered legitimate. The Myers returned to Australia in 1929. Ken Myer was a philanthropist, a prime mover behind the Victorian Arts Centre ; chairman of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation ; and was offered and declined the governor-generalship of Australia . Ken Myer and his brother Baillieu set up the Myer Foundation in 1959. Sidney Baillieu Myer married Sarah June Hordern (born 1935) of
390-478: The corner of Flinders Lane and William Street when Hells Angels member Christopher Hudson shot and killed Brendan Keilar and wounded two others. Keilar was posthumously awarded the Royal Humane Society of Australasia 's medal for bravery as he was shot and killed after intervening to save one of the victims. Flinders Lane has many notable multi-storey warehouses and buildings, many included on
416-462: The heart of the clothing trade. This was because of the Lane's proximity to wharves and railway stations, and centrality to Melbourne's population. For over one hundred years ‘The Lane’ was an Australian institution due to its clothing and textiles (the schmatte trade). Buyers could come from the country and ‘do’ the Lane in one session, which featured many Jewish migrant businesses. For a large part of
442-600: The humanities are all eligible. The choice of recipients by the selection panel is based on two criteria: outstanding talent, and exceptional courage. Financial hardship is not considered. Many Indigenous Australian creatives have been Sidney Myer Creative Fellows, including Jonathan Jones , Alexis Wright , Ellen van Neerven , Eric Avery , Vernon Ah Kee , and (in 2022) artist Vincent Namatjira . Sidney Myer Sidney Myer (born Simcha Myer Baevski ( Russian : Симха Майер Баевский , Belarusian : Сімха Маер Баеўскі ); 8 February 1878 – 5 September 1934)
468-660: The staff, and rest homes for them at the seaside and in the Dandenong Ranges . Some of Myer's friends and business associates feared the business was developing too rapidly but it was in a prosperous state and fast recovering from the effects of the Depression, when Myer died suddenly on 5 September 1934, at age 56. On 8 March 1905, Myer married Hannah Nance Flegeltaub (1868–1963), a cousin of Travers Vale . They had no children, but in 1911 he acted as guardian of his nephew, Norman Myer. In mid-1919, Sidney Myer went to
494-483: The twentieth century the garment trade remained an important industry in Flinders Lane. The number of clothing firms on the street reached 610 in 1939, and this level of activity was maintained until the early 1960s. In the 1960s and 1970s these businesses began to close due to changing requirements for space and labour, rising rents and traffic congestion. On Monday 18 June 2007, a shooting incident occurred on
520-506: Was a Belarusian-born Australian businessman and philanthropist, best known for founding Myer , Australia's largest chain of department stores. Myer was born in Krychaw (Krichev), Mogilev Governorate , Russian Empire (within the Pale of Settlement , present-day Belarus ), the youngest of eleven children born to Ezekiel Baevski, a Hebrew scholar, and his wife, Koona Dubrusha (née Shur). He
546-675: Was added at Melbourne. These became the Myer chain of department stores . The Myer Emporium grew with the purchase of such old established businesses as Robertson & Moffat, and Stephens & Sons. In 1925, Myer Ltd was listed on the Melbourne Stock Exchange and the new building on the Lonsdale Street frontage was begun. A separate building in Queensberry Street, Melbourne, was put up in 1928, and
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#1732802535675572-546: Was bought. In 1911 he purchased the business of Wright and Neil, Drapers , in Bourke Street , near the General Post Office , and a new building was completed and opened in 1914. The architects were HW & FB Tompkins who went on to design all the extensions over the next 20 years. The Doveton woollen mills at Ballarat were purchased in 1918, and in 1921 a new building fronting on Post Office Place,
598-623: Was chair of the fund, while Martyn Myer AO , Sidney's grandson through Ken Myer, was president of the Myer Foundation. In 2017, the foundation collaborated with the Tim Fairfax Family Foundation and the Keir Foundation in creating an initiative called A New Approach, to address a gap in up-to-date and accurate research and data about arts and cultural philanthropy. As of November 2022, members of
624-726: Was educated at the Jewish Elementary School in Krichev, and later managed his mother's drapery business. He emigrated to Melbourne in August 1899 with very little money and little knowledge of English to join his elder brother, Elcon Myer (1875–1938), who had left Russia two years earlier. Sidney and Elcon Myer both worked in Slutzkin's underclothing business in Flinders Lane , Melbourne ; later they established
650-548: Was established by Sidney's sons, Baillieu and Ken Myer – their sisters, Neilma Gantner and Lady Southey , became founding members. The Myer Foundation was established in order to award grants in sectors not covered by Sidney Myer's will. The Myer Foundation was endowed in 1992, after Ken Myer died, leaving most of his estate to the foundation. The fund and foundation have been supported by four generations of Myer family members. In 2011, Carrillo Gantner AC , grandson of Sidney Myer through Sidney's daughter Neilma Gantner,
676-569: Was personally financed by a £22,000 sum, to provide employment opportunities. For the unemployed at Christmas, he financed a Christmas dinner for 10,000 people at the Royal Exhibition Building , including a gift for every child. Myer's will was proved at £922,000. His funeral was attended by some 100,000 people. One-tenth of his estate went to establish the Sidney Myer Charitable Trust , now known as
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