Our Story
The Foundation was established in 2025 as a vehicle to strengthen the wellbeing of our local community. Our purpose is simple: to harness local generosity and transform it into long-term, locally governed impact.
We will be guided by the people who live in the place, understand its rhythms and hold its stories. We are not bound by election cycles or external agendas, instead we are accountable only to the community itself.
Our beginnings
The Yarra Valley Community Foundation has a brief but meaningful history. As we launch this website in January 2026, it’s inspiring to reflect on how it all began. A small group of ten passionate locals met on 20 May 2025 at Barrique Wine Store to explore the idea of creating a community foundation for Healesville and its surrounding communities.
That evening, Tony D’Abbs, Nina Sturgess, Bruce Argyle, Anthony Fitzpatrick, Leigh Harry, Elaine and Stuart Truman, Sophie Moore, Ben Banfield, and Jan Cochrane-Harry discussed the potential benefits of a foundation that could support and strengthen our community for generations to come.
Early in 2025, federal legislation, championed by Community Foundations Australia and Philanthropy Australia paved the way for the Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury, Dr Andrew Leigh, to introduce a new form of community charity structure.
The Yarra Valley Community Foundation is proud to be among the first established under this new framework. We began with humble beginnings; a single donation of $40,000 that made it possible to employ a part-time Executive Officer and lay the groundwork for our mission.
Now, as we move forward, our focus is clear: to help make living and working in our community more rewarding, enriching, and equitable for everyone.