Robert Walter Storr (17 September 1920 – 15 February 1992) was an

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

n-born

banker A bank is a financial institution that accepts Deposit account, deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital m ...

active in

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...

and his country of birth. After his death he became notable as a

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...

with

bequest A bequest is property given by will. Historically, the term ''bequest'' was used for personal property given by will and ''deviser'' for real property. Today, the two words are used interchangeably. The word ''bequeath'' is a verb form for the act ...

s in

medical science Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care practice ...

and

music education Music education is a field of practice in which educators are trained for careers as elementary or secondary music teachers, school or music conservatory ensemble directors. Music education is also a research area in which scholars do origina ...

Birth and education

Storr was born in

Newcastle, New South Wales Newcastle ( ; Awabakal: ) is a metropolitan area and the second most populated city in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It includes the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie local government areas, and is the hub of the Greater Newcastle area, w ...

, and aged eight his family moved to a rural property between

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...

and Grenfell. His early education was in the multi-class schoolroom at Ooma Creek Public School before attending

Newington College , motto_translation = To Faith Add Knowledge , location = Inner West and Lower North Shore of Sydney, New South Wales , country = Australia , coordinates = , pushpin_map = A ...

as a boarder (1935–1936). He left school at 15 to return to the land.

Banking career

Realising that he was not suited to farm life, Storr joined the

Commonwealth Bank The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA), or CommBank, is an Australian multinational bank with businesses across New Zealand, Asia, the United States and the United Kingdom. It provides a variety of financial services including retail, busines ...

in 1939. After war service he returned to the bank and worked in both Australia and

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...

. From 1958 until 1963, Storr lived in

Kuala Lumpur , anthem = '' Maju dan Sejahtera'' , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , su ...

and was the Assistant to the Governor of

Bank Negara Malaysia The Central Bank of Malaysia (BNM; ms, Bank Negara Malaysia) is the Malaysian central bank. Established on 26 January 1959 as the Central Bank of Malaya (''Bank Negara Tanah Melayu''), its main purpose is to issue currency, act as banker and ad ...

. After his return to Australia he became the first Principal of the Commonwealth Bank Staff Training College (later known as Callaghan Staff College, but now disbanded). In 1971, Storr moved to

Jakarta Jakarta (; , bew, Jakarte), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta ( id, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta) is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Lying on the northwest coast of Java, the world's most populous island, Jakarta ...

and became Principal of the Training College for Indonesian Bankers before re-establishing the

Jakarta Stock Exchange Jakarta Stock Exchange (JSX) (Indonesian: Bursa Efek Jakarta (BEJ)) was a stock exchange based in Jakarta, Indonesia, before it merged with the Surabaya Stock Exchange to form the Indonesia Stock Exchange. History Originally opened in 1912 under ...

in 1977. In 1982 he moved to

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

to start an office for the Commonwealth Bank and after his retirement he remained there and consulted to

Westpac Westpac Banking Corporation, known simply as Westpac, is an Australian multinational banking and financial services company headquartered at Westpac Place in Sydney, New South Wales. Established in 1817 as the Bank of New South Wales, it ...

as a financial advisor.

Honours

For his work with the central bank of

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

he was made an Officer of the Order of the Defender of the Realm (K.M.N.) by the then

King of Malaysia The Yang di-Pertuan Agong (, Jawi: ), also known as the Supreme Head of the Federation, the Paramount Ruler or simply as the Agong, and unofficially as the King of Malaysia, is the constitutional monarch and head of state of Malaysia. The of ...

Putra of Perlis Tuanku Syed Harun Putra ibni Almarhum Syed Hassan Jamalullail ( Jawi: ; 25 November 1920 – 16 April 2000) was the third Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaya, and later of Malaysia and sixth Raja of Perlis. Early career He was the son of Syed Has ...

War service

From May 1941 until November 1943, Storr served as a sergeant with the

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (Austral ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Golf

During his time in Malaysia, Storr became the Captain of the

Royal Selangor Golf Club The Royal Selangor Golf Club ( ms, Kelab Golf di Raja Selangor) is a golf course in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Established in 1893, it is one of the oldest golf clubs in Asia. The club is open only to members. Its entrance is located at the intersect ...

. He was the first Captain of th
Jagorawi Golf and Country Club
in Indonesia.

Bequests

* The Robert W Storr Chair of Hepatic Medicine was established in 1993 under an 5 million legacy to the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...

. It funds Professor Jacob George to undertake research that focuses on non-alcoholic

steatohepatitis Steatohepatitis is a type of fatty liver disease, characterized by inflammation of the liver with concurrent fat accumulation in liver. Mere deposition of fat in the liver is termed steatosis, and together these constitute fatty liver changes. ...

and hepatic fibrosis. The bequest also funds research into the

molecular A molecule is a group of two or more atoms held together by attractive forces known as chemical bonds; depending on context, the term may or may not include ions which satisfy this criterion. In quantum physics, organic chemistry, and bioche ...

and

cellular Cellular may refer to: *Cellular automaton, a model in discrete mathematics * Cell biology, the evaluation of cells work and more * ''Cellular'' (film), a 2004 movie *Cellular frequencies, assigned to networks operating in cellular RF bands *Cell ...

basis for disease progression in chronic

hepatitis C Hepatitis C is an infectious disease caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV) that primarily affects the liver; it is a type of viral hepatitis. During the initial infection people often have mild or no symptoms. Occasionally a fever, dark urine, a ...

. * Robert Walter Storr Music Bursary was established in 1993 under an 1 million legacy to

Newington College , motto_translation = To Faith Add Knowledge , location = Inner West and Lower North Shore of Sydney, New South Wales , country = Australia , coordinates = , pushpin_map = A ...

. The Bursary is awarded to a boy of exceptional musical ability who is a resident of Indonesia, Malaysia or Singapore and who is eligible to enter Years 9, 10 or 11 (14–17 years of age) whose financial means would not otherwise enable them to study in Australia. The Storr Bursary covers all normal tuition and boarding fees at Newington, as well as music fees, Higher School Certificate or

International Baccalaureate Diploma The International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) is a two-year Curriculum, educational programme primarily aimed at 16-to-19-year-olds in 140 countries around the world. The programme provides an internationally accepted qualification fo ...

charges, health cover and a return airfare from the country of normal residency.Robert Walter Storr Music Bursary
Retrieved 24 August 2022.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Storr, Robert Walter 1920 births 1992 deaths People educated at Newington College Australian philanthropists Australian bankers Officers of the Order of the Defender of the Realm 20th-century philanthropists Australian Army personnel of World War II Australian Army soldiers