A FOOTSCRAY legend was honoured by the Victorian Women’s Trust at the launch of its new $10,000 community award last week.
The trust’s executive director Mary Crooks said the Essie Burbridge Community Award would be offered to organisations which “promote the values critical to a vibrant and tolerant society” in Victoria.
“We’ve received lots of anecdotal evidence that there has been an increase in racism and intolerance, especially since 9/11,” she said.
“We thought that if we make an award available to groups in the community who are practicing Essie’s values this would be a way we could nourish a multicultural spirit in the community.”
Mrs Burbridge lived in Footscray from 1936 until her death in 2004.
She was best known for boarding overseas exchange students who attended Footscray Technical College (now Victoria University) – a practice she began in the 1950s.
“She had students as boarders … her place was somewhere people felt as though they could be there and be received kindly,” Mrs Crooks said.
“She saw them as almost one of her own, she used to bake scones for them and played Scrabble with them to help improve their English.”
Sir Edward ‘Weary’ Dunlop, president of the Melbourne Council of Overseas Students, in 1992 presented Mrs Burbridge with six silver inscribed goblets in recognition of her services to overseas students.
Mrs Burbridge also ran a cafe in Hopkins St called the Tucker Box Cafe in the 1930s.
“She ran a soup kitchen from there during the Depression,” Mrs Crooks said.
Victoria University’s commemorative book ‘90 Years 90 Legends’ also mentions Mrs Burbridge’s involvement in the community.
“During the depression she saw people going without food, so she began making soup to give away from the shop,” the book records.
“She traded cakes she had baked for meat from the butcher opposite her shop, and chopped piles of vegetables to make the soup.”
Soup lines could stretch down Hopkins St and “around the corner”.
Mrs Crooks said Mrs Burbridge also worked for decades supporting the Footscray Youth Club.
“She held monthly bingo meetings at her home to raise funds for the youth club ladies auxiliary and she was a tireless worker for the mother’s club of the North Footscray State School for 40 years, even after her two boys left,” Mrs Crooks said.
“She was made a life governor of the Western Hospital in recognition for her decades of funding efforts.
“And she was awarded in the in the late 90s the Order of Australia Medal for her services to the community.”
Mrs Crooks said she met Mrs Burbridge through their Victorian Women’s Trust exhibition Extraordinary Women, Ordinary Lives.
“In that process we canvassed for nominations across the state and we got about 265 women,” she said.
Mrs Burbridge was a nominee who stood out from the crowd.
She was remembered by the trust when it planned the community award earlier this year.
“We’ve been going for 20 years now and our message is to improve conditions for women around Victoria and we also believe if you improve conditions for women, you improve conditions for men and women and families,” Mrs Crooks said.
She said Mrs Burbridge exemplified these ideals.
Minister for Women’s Affairs Mary Delahunty praised the value of multiculturalism to Victoria at the launch of the Essie Burbridge Community Award.
“Victorians come from more than 230 nations around the world and one-in four of us were born overseas,” Ms Delahunty said.
“We speak 180 languages and dialects and we practice 116 different faiths.
“We need multiculturalism more than ever to promote harmony and understanding,” Ms Delahunty said.
The Essie Burbridge Community Award will be available in 2007.
Those who want to donate to the trust can contact 9642 0422
