The RE Ross Trust appoints Chief Executive Officer
The Trustees of The RE Ross Trust are pleased to announce the appointment of Austin Paterson as Chief Executive Officer of the Ross Trust following the retirement of Sylvia Geddes. Austin will take up the appointment in mid September.

Austin joins the Trust from his position as Executive Officer of G21 Health and Wellbeing Pillar, where he worked to develop and foster partnerships amongst primary health care, health promotion and community development organisations operating across five Local Government Areas in Geelong.

Prior to joining G21, Austin held senior management and chief executive positions at aged and community care agencies, Karingal Inc, Kalkee Community, Strathdon Community and Bellarine Peninuslar Community Health Service, in both Melbourne and the Barwon South West region. Key achievements led by Austin in these positions include the establishment of a Community Partnership Initiative for people living in aged care at Strathdon Community; the establishment of a new aged care community in Marshall, Geelong and the harmonious amalgamation of all Community Health Services on the Bellarine Peninsula.

In 2005-2006, Austin was appointed by the Minister to Chair the Community Advisory Committee for the Department of Justice to guide the community consultation process leading to the establishment of this new prison recently established in Lara near Geelong.

Ross Trust establishes new Prospectus Development Grant Program.
The Ross Trust acknowledges that most not-for-profit organisations must seek their funding from a diverse range of sources - government and philanthropic grants, commercial business sponsorships and donations from businesses and individuals. One of the aims of the Ross Trust is to help not-for-profit organisations improve their capacity to source the funds they need to meet high priority community needs.

In February 2008, the Trust decided to institute a Prospectus Development Grants Program to assist organisations to use the Framework to prepare a prospectus. Please consult the Ross Trust Guidelines which are downloadable from this site.

New publication.
In November 2007 the Ross Trust, The Myer Foundation, The Sidney Myer Fund and The Ian Potter Foundation hosted an International Philanthropy Collaboration for Chief Executives and Trustees of their own foundations and some foundations from Canada, Europe, New Zealand and England.

The publication from that Collaboration, Conversations about Possibilities - Themes and reflections from the International Philanthropy Collaboration, authored by Rosemary Addis and Catherine Brown, is now available for downloading from this site.