A legacy continuing for generations to come

For a long time, Patricia (Pat) Anderson was a private client of Equity Trustees. In fact, she and her husband John made many friends among our clients – the ties between them strengthened by a shared holiday destination – Lorne in Victoria.

Theirs was a later-in-life pairing – but a happy one that lasted for decades living in Camberwell (Victoria). He was a Minister with the Uniting Church and she was a devout Catholic with a fierce streak of independence who had enjoyed a career in the banking sector.

John died in 1993, but Pat continued living a full and social life partaking in the sports they had enjoyed together (including tennis and lawn bowls) with friends. She was an avid card player and, when ageing demanded a little less activity of her own, she could be found watching sport on TV – never missing the Australian Open and other key events.

When Pat died in December 2019, aged 94, she left behind a trust of around $12 million after leaving some gifts to extended family members. Her instructions were to establish a perpetual charitable trust called JOPA (combining the first two letters of their names).

A number of charities were named to benefit – reflecting the interests and concerns of both John and Pat. JOPA will distribute funds from the trust to the Arthritis Association, Heart Foundation, Red Cross, Vision Australia, Prahran Mission, Salvo’s, Cancer Council. Separately, John left one-off gifts (bequests) in his Will to Dementia Australia, Geelong Animal Welfare Society, Lost Dogs Home, Melbourne City Mission, Peter MacCallum Cancer Institute, and the Uniting Church.

As Australia’s leading specialist trustee company and leading trustee philanthropic funder, Equity Trustees is proud to be a part of
Patricia Anderson's legacy continuing for generations to come.