Edith Latham Kernot

MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

(4 December 1877 – 19 October 1967) was an Australian community worker in Geelong. She supported the District nurses, the local Red Cross and Geelong Hospital. She was vice-president of

Geelong Hospital The University Hospital Geelong, formerly the Geelong Hospital, is an Australian public hospital located in Ryrie Street, Geelong, Victoria. The hospital is part of Barwon Health, Victoria's largest regional health care provider, which has 21 si ...

and she sat on the Charities Board of Victoria.

Life

Kernot was born in

Geelong Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in the southeastern Australian state of Victoria, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River, ...

in 1877. She had an elder sibling and six younger ones who survived childhood. She showed an early talent for the violin and she would travel each week for lessons. She gave a performance as a teenager for the Ladies Benevolent Society and throughout her life she own and played her Duke violin. Her husband was Walter Charles Kernot who was a chemist. His uncle had founded a stationary / chemist business. She supported the District Nursing Society and she became its vice President. She was a founding member of the local

Australian Red Cross Society The Australian Red Cross, formally the Australian Red Cross Society, is a humanitarian aid and community services charity in Australia. Tracing its history back to 1923 and being incorporated by royal charter in 1941, the Australian Red Cro ...

and during her fifty years of membership she was president for three years. She joined the Charities Board of Victoria in 1933 and served for fifteen years. There were fourteen members of the board and it was their task to decide how to channel "charitable relief to diseased, infirm, incurable, poor or destitute persons." Before she left in 1948 she was its president for three years. In 1941 her similarly public spirited husband, Walter Charles Kernot, died. A memorial mural was commissioned from

Christian Waller Christian Marjory Emily Carlyle Waller (Yandell) (2 August 1894 - 25 May 1954) was an Australian printmaker, illustrator, muralist and stained-glass artist. At 15 she moved to Melbourne, where she studied at the National Gallery School. In 1915 ...

to "a good churchman". It was created in

Christ Church, Geelong The Christ Church is an Anglican church located in , Victoria, Australia. Designed by Edmund Blacket, the church is the oldest Anglican church in Victoria, in continuous use on its original site. On 9 October 1974 the church was listed on the V ...

in 1942. She was vice-president of Geelong and District Hospital and in 1958 she became a

Member of The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

in the New Year Honours for her public service. Kernot died in her home city of

in 1967.

Private life

She had three children including the golfer Edith Betty Kernot who became the Australian Ladies Golf champion. Her other daughter, May Latham married in 1936.

References

External links

Biography at ADB
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kernot, Edith Latham 1877 births 1967 deaths People from Geelong Hospital administrators Charity fundraisers