Legacy Series

The True Meaning of Philanthropy

21 Oct 2025

Some years ago, I walked through the doors of Barwon Health’s Palliative Care Unit and was met with a sight that stopped me in my tracks. I have never forgotten the moment.

Behind the reception desk, greeting families with warmth and grace, was none other than local identity Keith Fagg.

A respected businessman. A former Mayor. Someone I have always admired for his kind leadership - leadership that inspires others to be better and do better, delivered by example, in a way that uplifts and unites. Here he was - quietly volunteering across our health service.

Keith spends his time volunteering for no other reason than it’s the right thing to do. He isn’t there for recognition or praise. He sits with patients as they recount their life story as part of the Dignity Therapy Program - their childhood memories, their great loves, their triumphs and regrets - and he helps capture these stories in a keepsake booklet, a beautiful record of a life well lived. These booklets are given to families as precious heirlooms, filled with laughter, wisdom, and the unmistakable imprint of a person’s soul.

It is one of the most human acts imaginable - to help someone give shape and voice to their story, even as it draws to a close. It is compassion at its most profound.

Recently, I experienced another moment that brought that same feeling rushing back - a quiet reminder of what it means to give.

As I walked through the doors of the Cotton On Children’s Ward at University Hospital Geelong, I was struck by a sense of familiarity. Years earlier, I had stepped through the doorway of another area of our health services and witnessed Keith offering comfort to to patients and their families and on this occasion, I was witnessing the same philanthropic spirit. 

In the midst of the busyness of the children’s ward, I saw Heather Fagg, Keith’s wife, kneeling gently in the playroom, surrounded by toys. She was searching carefully for the perfect one - not just any toy, but the right toy - one that might bring a spark of joy to a frightened child, or a moment of peace to a worried parent.

Heather has a warmth that seems to fill any room she enters. Being in her company brings an immediate sense of ease - a calm that gently settles over you. She has this remarkable ability to make you feel as though you have her full and undivided attention - because you do. She listens with intention, speaks with kindness, and gives of herself wholeheartedly - not because she must, but because she truly cares.

Heather, too, is a volunteer at Barwon Health, bringing comfort, play, and calm to children and their families during some of their hardest days in our hospital. She has an extraordinary gift for making people feel seen.

Together, Keith and Heather embody the very essence of philanthropy - not only through their time, presence, and compassion, but through their personal support of the Barwon Health Foundation and Barwon Health. Their giving is not only financial - although their generosity is truly remarkable - it is also deeply personal. It is love turned into legacy, and it is all about giving back to Geelong.

Philanthropy is often associated only with large donations or grand gestures. But in its purest form, philanthropy is about people. It’s for the love of humanity. It’s about seeing a need and choosing to act. It’s a mindset of care, a belief that our community can be stronger, fairer, and more compassionate when we all give what we can, in whatever way we can.

Here in Geelong, that spirit runs deep. It’s in the neighbour who checks in, the business that gives back, and the volunteers who quietly restores dignity and hope.

Keith and Heather remind us that philanthropy is not a transaction - it’s a translation of compassion into action. It’s the daily, deliberate choice to make our community better, kinder, more connected.

And when we give of ourselves - our time, our kindness, our care - we build hope.

As a community, we should all take a moment to reflect on what we can give - not just in dollars, but in time, in care, in heart. Because when each of us gives what we can, in whatever way we can, we become part of something far greater than ourselves – we build a Greater Geelong for all.

The newly established ‘Keith and Heather Fagg Fund’ will proudly support the Barwon Women’s and Children’s.  

Zoe Waters
Executive Director
Barwon Health Foundation

Keith and Heather Fagg