The Smith Family’s centenary

Celebrating 100 years of The Smith Family

This calendar year marks The Smith Family’s 100th year of working alongside families to improve the lives of Australian children living in poverty.

Our story began on Christmas Eve in 1922, when fi ve businessmen banded together to deliver gifts to children in a Sydney orphanage. That saw the creation of an organisation that for 60 years focused on welfare assistance and emergency relief, before we shifted in the 1980s to support the education of children experiencing disadvantage, as a practical way of helping them create better futures for themselves. Our centenary year presented an opportunity to refl ect on our history, consider our present and look to our future, while taking team members, families, volunteers, VIEW Club members and supporters, past and present, on a unique journey.

We kicked off the centenary celebrations in December 2021 with an offi cial launch for team members to commemorate this special occasion. The launch coincided with our annual Christmas toy and book distribution to families, a 10-decade-long tradition.

In a special fi lm to mark our history, students, alumni, families and longstanding team members and volunteers shared how The Smith Family has been a much-valued part of their lives.

We also launched a centenary website to document our history. This includes a timeline of key events from the past 100 years, a social history of the organisation written by sociologist and historian Tanya Bretherton, and fi lms and stories that bring our work to life: www.centenary.thesmithfamily.com.au We were thrilled to welcome journalist and author Wendy Harmer as our fi rst Centenary Champion. She worked with longstanding Ambassador, Channel 10 television presenter and journalist Sarah Harris, to promote and celebrate The Smith Family throughout the year. In December we were part of the City of Sydney’s New Year’s Eve celebrations, as the event’s offi cial charity, and our logo featured on a Sydney Harbour Bridge pylon. We are excited to continue the relationship again in the coming year.

Early Christmas giving to orphans Packing hampers circa 1970

The Smith Family distributing clothing for fl ood relief, 1950s

Smith Family team members volunteering at Toy and Book Delivery Day

Student and a volunteer tutor at a Learning Club

In February, our inaugural Patron, the Governor General, His Excellency General the Honourable David Hurley AC DSC (Retd), hosted a reception at Admiralty House in Sydney to celebrate with students, families, volunteers, donors, VIEW Club members, supporters and other partners. During the event we heard from Gamilaroi person, Teddy Collier-Caldwell, who explained how support from The Smith Family enabled them to become the fi rst person in their family to go to university. Now they want to give back by becoming a teacher in rural and remote communities, providing local students with a role model and a pathway to success.

Channel 9 presenter and journalist Brooke Boney, another proud Gamilaroi woman, was announced as our second Centenary Champion in April. Brooke is sharing her story and early experiences of growing up to highlight the value of unlocking children’s potential through education.

In April, we received a warm congratulatory message from a former Smith Family board member and current ABC Chair, Ita Buttrose. She wrote: “You are helping young Australians in need to make the most of their education and break the cycle of poverty. Here’s to the next century!”

The following month, we held a centenary webinar for our corporate partners, to discuss how targeted educational support assists young Australians in need. Australian Secondary Principals’ Association head Andrew Pierpoint, higher education specialist and Pro Vice-Chancellor Indigenous Strategy at Macquarie University Dr Leanne Holt, and Professor Kristy Muir, Chief Alliances Offi cer with the Paul Ramsay Foundation, generously shared their knowledge.

At the midpoint of the year we marked the ‘Now’ phase of our centenary by producing a fi lm highlighting The Smith Family’s work today. We heard from fi ve outstanding young students – Alliance, Susu, Quinny, Bobby and Seynab – who are all excellent role models and living proof of how education can open new opportunities. We will continue to acknowledge our staff and all our supporters for their commitment to the education of young Australians and their families, as we head towards December 2022 when our commemorations conclude. With the former and current support of all these key groups, our organisation is proud to have made a world of difference to thousands of children across Australia. We thank you all.

Team members celebrating our centenary year

A century of volunteering

In our centenary year, we acknowledge and thank our volunteers for 100 years of volunteering. See more on volunteering across the years on page 63.

CEO Doug Taylor with Smith Family Ambassador, Sarah Harris at Admiralty House The Smith Family supporting children’s education today

“My dream is to teach in rural and remote communities. I want to bridge the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous children, to give kids the resources they require to achieve their own dreams, like what my own family and The Smith Family did for me. I understand the importance of teaching children the basics – but I also know the importance of teaching children kindness and respect.”

Teddy Collier-Caldwell

Learning for Life alumni