Fremantle Hospital's Ladies Auxiliary Celebrates 100 Years

One of Fremantle’s most loved public services, Fremantle Hospital, hosted a very special afternoon tea last week in honour of the Fremantle Hospital Ladies Auxiliary, with a celebration of 100 years of giving, care, friendship and community.

For those in attendance at the 100-year celebration, there was no doubt that one of the reasons Fremantle Hospital is so loved is thanks to the service, commitment and contributions of the Ladies Auxiliary. VIP’s at the centenary afternoon tea included Minister for Aged Care and Seniors and Local Member for Fremantle, Simone McGurk; Mayor of the City of Fremantle, Hannah Fitzhardinge; South Metropolitan Health Service Acting Chief Executive, Tim Leen; Acting Executive Director of Fiona Stanley Fremantle Hospitals Group, Luke Dix; and Ladies Auxiliary member and Fremantle Hospital Museum Manager, Ruth Letts.

Take a moment to imagine Freo life in 1925 when the Ladies Auxiliary was founded and it is unlikely anyone would have called Fremantle ‘Freo’. Like today, Fremantle Port would have been a place of busy activity, movement and contrasts, as well as leisure and relaxation. And there were a couple of significant events for which the services of Fremantle Hospital would have been sought.

Continued industrial action throughout 1925 culminated in the Fremantle Wharf Riot where maritime union members attempted to prevent a ship being moved, and police equipped with batons confronted strikers wielding improvised weapons. There were injuries to both police and strikers.

And just a year later in 1926, the Fremantle Railway Bridge collapsed into the river after heavy flooding.

*The first Ladies Auxiliary Kiosk – built in 1927 and named The Grosser Kiosk – was a bequest by Frederick Samuel Grosser.*

The Ladies Auxiliary was founded at a time when the Fremantle Hospital’s accounts showed them to be 800 pounds in arrears, with members of the community joining together to help out with food and supplies. According to meticulously kept handwritten records, the first item the Auxiliary donated to the hospital was a porcelain bedpan, followed by an x-ray tilt table and other patient comforts such as pyjamas, slippers, dressing gowns and knitted socks.

*Photos from a Slide Show Created by Ladies Auxiliary Member and ex executive director of nursing Ruth Letts*

Over 100 years that spans the Great Depression to the recent Covid pandemic and innumerable events and shifts in between, Fremantle Hospital Ladies Auxiliary has responded to the changing needs of the hospital and raised over $4.5 million for essential medical equipment, patient transport, research grants, renovations, and countless improvements to patient care. Perhaps their most loved contribution was the ‘Lolly Trolley’ which for over 60 years was wheeled through the wards to bring sweetness, joy and a little folly to patients, visitors and busy hospital workers. If only healthy eating guidelines accounted for the joy of a treat, particularly when unwell or over-worked.

No wonder iconic nicknames caught on inspired by the colour of their uniforms; first the Lavender Ladies and later the Terracotta Tarts. Today, volunteers wear teal and a new nickname has not yet caught on. How about the Teal Titans?

Today, the Ladies Auxiliary remains an integral part of Fremantle Hospital’s culture of hospitality and community with around 25 dedicated volunteers running the busy hospital kiosk five days a week, all to continue raising much-needed funds. Their oldest member was just 4 years old when the Ladies Auxiliary was formed and works two days a week making sandwiches, and their longest serving members has been active for 34 years.

New members keen to continue the legacy of the Fremantle Hospital Ladies Auxiliary are most welcome, and you can find out more here and here.

Congratulations and thank you Fremantle Hospital Ladies Auxiliary for your inspiring and unwavering service to Fremantle Hospital and the community.

And if you are interested in taking a walk down memory lane, do go visit the Fremantle Hospital Museum created by indomitable Ladies Auxiliary member and former executive director of nursing Ruth Letts, making sure to stop by the display not far from Fremantle Hospital’s front reception, commemorating 100 years of the Fremantle Ladies Auxiliary.

By Madeleine Cox

* Madeleine Cox was raised on a farm on Binjareb Noongar country and now, together with her New Zealand/Aotearoa husband, lives with her children in Fremantle/Walyalup. She loves exploring places and ideas, and connecting with people and nature. This has prompted Madeleine to start writing independently, after many years work as a corporate and government lawyer, and service on not-for-profit boards in the health and education sectors.

~ For more articles by Madeleine Cox on FSN, look here.

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