The Survival Fund is an initiative of the Walter and Eliza Hall Trust, created with the aim of raising additional funds to assist those affected by poverty who find themselves in a crisis.
Financial assistance can be provided for almost any purpose considered necessary for the applicant’s health and wellbeing, but the Trust is positioned as a provider of last resort assistance. Even then, due to the high demand for our limited resources, we can help only where needs are desperate and assistance is necessary to maintain the minimum standards of safety, security, protection and comfort for the individual or family.
But even small amounts can make big differences to the lives of those in crisis.
Read some examples of what we do, or some testimonials from people we've helped.
Our History
During the middle of the nineteenth century, Englishman Walter Hall came to Australia with only a few pounds in his pocket to seek his fortune in the gold rush. After a shaky start he became a very successful and wealthy businessman. Much of his wealth came from Queensland's Mt. Morgan gold mine. He also acquired substantial holdings in the booming pastoral industry and his entrepreneurial skills also extended to transport. He was the last owner of Cobb and Co, the horse-drawn coach line of Australian history and tradition. He died in 1911 aged 80 years.
Both Walter and his wife, Eliza, were active philanthropists during their life together. In the year following her husband's death Eliza set up a charitable trust with a donation of £1,000,000. It was named the Walter and Eliza Hall Trust.
Since then the Trust has helped thousands of Australians in their time of crisis. Many others have been helped to reach their full potential.
In addition to those individuals, many charitable organisations have been assisted by the Trust. One notable example is the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research in Melbourne, which was established in 1915.
Today, the Trust faces an ever-growing demand for its assistance, and while the resources emanating from Eliza’s original donation and some generous benefactors still enable the Trust to do much good work, it has been necessary to try to supplement these resources by seeking support from the general public.