Betty Amsden Donates Another $1 Million to Arts Centre Melbourne

Arts Centre Melbourne Arts Angel, Miss Betty Amsden OAM, today became its "Six Million Dollar Woman" with another visionary gift of $1 million to further support and develop Arts Centre Melbourne programs for children, young people, families and the broader community.

This new act of generosity brings Betty's overall financial commitment to Arts Centre Melbourne to $6.6 million. It adds to the landmark $5 million pledge she made in 2009 to establish The Betty Amsden Arts Education Endowment for Children, and is hot-on-the-heels of her induction onto the Victorian Women's Honour Roll and her increased support of aspiring arts managers through the Betty Amsden Scholarship for Leadership in Arts Management, an annual $15,000 commitment announced last month.

Betty Amsden's gift to Arts Centre Melbourne's endowment fund is her gift to the next generation, providing an inspiring platform from which secure additional support to extend the role Arts Centre Melbourne plays in the cultural life of Melbourne. Keen to see the impact of her support realised in her lifetime as well and highly supportive of Arts Centre Melbourne's work in this area and the staff delivering it, she has added $1 million over the next four years to grow these programs even further.

A supporter of Arts Centre Melbourne since it opened and currently a Governor of the Arts Centre Melbourne Foundation, Betty Amsden exemplifies the involved philanthropist.

"Betty's support extends far beyond her exceptionally generous financial support. She wants to be involved, connected and hands-on and she wants to inspire others to make a difference too," said Arts Centre Melbourne Chief Executive Judith Isherwood. "She is a self-made woman whose fortune was not made through inheritance. Amazingly astute, she sees the potential in people and organisations and throws her efforts into encouraging those she supports to think big and realise their dreams."

The bulk of Betty's money was made through developing a series of nursing homes, an opportunity realised from personal experiences when she saw the need to lift the standard of nursing homes to create spaces for the elderly that she felt gave them more dignity and respect than what was being offered.

Betty Amsden said, "The arts are for everyone and Arts Centre Melbourne belongs to the community of Victoria. My desire through my philanthropy is to enable people, especially the young, to have the opportunities to experience the performing arts, and I encourage others to follow my lead and to offer their own commitment and generous support for this vital connection to our future. To me children are very important because they are our future. It gives me great satisfaction to watch the people I support and the programs I make possible go forward and flourish and be the best they can be. It is the joy of knowing I am doing a little good somewhere.

"It is so easy to write a cheque and hand it over but I don't think that is true philanthropy in actual fact. You need to know what the organisation it doing, why it is doing it, and whether it matches my charter and dream of helping others. I'm confident that Arts Centre Melbourne ticks the boxes in all these areas. It doesn't matter the amount, it is how you give and expect nothing in return that is important. But it is amazing what you do receive," she said.

Betty is passionate about involving the community in the life of Arts Centre Melbourne, the home of the performing arts in Melbourne and Australia's largest and busiest performing arts centre. Arts Centre Melbourne is a not-for-profit organisation which receives around 20% of its operational funding from the Victorian Government and relies on the support of generous individuals to reach deeply into the community. It delivers Australia's largest performing arts participation program, with over 150,000 children, young people and their families taking part each year, with a further 55,000 students and teachers participating in its annual education program. Last year Arts Centre Melbourne staged more than 4,400 performances and public events, engaging with more than 2.3 million people.

For more information about supporting Arts Centre Melbourne contact Development Director Jessica Roberts at jessica.roberts@artscentremelbourne.com.au or call (03) 9281 8202.