- Inducted:
- 2001
- Category:
- Honour Roll
Jessie Vasey was a passionate supporter of war widows and their children.
During World War Two, Jessie became a leading figure in the war effort, serving as Secretary of the Australian Imperial Force Women's Association. It provided financial and other support to the wives, widows and families of soldiers.
Sadly, Jessie became a war widow herself when her husband, Major General George Vasey, was killed in an aircraft accident in March 1945. It was just four months before the war ended.
Jessie became an inspiring role model for many war widows.
In 1946 she started a craft guild which drew 300 war widows to its first meeting. It grew to become a national association known as the War Widows Guild of Australia, with Jessie as President.
The Guild taught war widows crafts such as weaving, that they could sell to supplement their small pension. It also created a safe space to come together and connect over shared experiences.
Jessie led a long campaign to increase the war widows' pension to equal the basic wage. The pension had not been increased in more than 20 years and with post-war inflation, war widows suffered financial distress.
She also campaigned against a morality clause that meant the pension could be terminated if the widow remarried or was suspected of having an affair or ‘living in sin’.
In 1949, with a donation and a car raffle, the Guild began to raise funds for housing for war widows. The priorities were the elderly and sick who were unable to find affordable accommodation.
In 1951 the Guild purchased its first property, which was renovated and turned into self-contained units. The scheme grew from there and the government offered to match funds raised by volunteer agencies.
The Guild formed a company, the Vasey Housing Auxiliary, with Jessie as its managing director. By 1965 it was housing 250 widows in Victoria alone.
Jessie provided the inspiration for other Guild Housing schemes to flourish throughout Australia.
Jessie was awarded an OBE in 1950 and a CBE in 1963 for her services to war widows.
Updated