Retirement Village Industry Indebted to the late Tony Baldwin

The retirement village industry's leading pioneer, Tony Baldwin, passed away suddenly on 22 June 2009. His voluntary contribution to the retirement village industry over many years is unsurpassed. Following is a eulogy delivered by long time associate within the industry, Bill Riddington, at the celebration of Tony's life on 29 June 2009.

Tony Baldwin Eulogy - Bill Riddington 

On behalf of the Retirement Villages Association and its members may I offer our condolences to the Baldwin family. Tony was an extraordinary man, a visionary, who then put this vision to work, an advisor, a negotiator, a gentleman, a carer, a clear and precise thinker, a confidante and friend. 

I first met Tony in 1978 when I came into the Retirement Industry. He was already seen by many as a leader in the field even then. He had started Bayview Garden Village in the mid 70’s which was the first of many projects under the Baldwin Care banner. He saw the opportunity for the private sector to provide aged care for those who could afford to pay their own way; and outside the church and charitable sector of the Industry.

Possibly his greatest legacy and visionary expertise is Vaucluse Gardens in Hobart, which started out as a heritage listed old home with little to offer anyone, but Tony saw the potential and over many years transformed this site into an outstanding facility. 

His documentation became the benchmark for those who wished to follow his lead, not everyone agreed with his financial formulas but his legal documents set many lawyers along the right track. 

Tony’s vision again came to the fore when he started the Retirement Village Association in NSW in 1988, when he called the meeting in Chatswood to form the Association after carefully researching the needs and how best to proceed. He became our first State President, I was the Secretary. He then worked with the other States to set up the National body and was the first National President. 

Tony was always generous with his time and expertise.  He was a mentor for so many of us as our Industry gathered momentum. The Industry has had many challenges over its lifetime and Tony was always at the forefront in meeting these challenges. We had a number of tussles with the Tax Department which led to numerous rulings and much discussion.

His skills at negotiating with bureaucrats and politicians were never more evident than during these times of crisis. He also led the way with advice on our initial State legislation, The Code of Practice, and was a respected member of the Consultative Committee to the Tenancy Commissioner who was the person responsible for Retirement Villages in the early days. His drafting skills were often called upon during these early days and we owe much to his powers of persuasion when dealing with some very differing views on how to control the relationship between proprietors and residents.

In all the time I have known Tony I never saw him “loose his cool”, even when some of the comments flying around at these meetings were far from complimentary. 

Tony worked extraordinary hours, I remember receiving a fax from him one morning at my office, (this was before emails) and when I looked at the time it was sent I was astounded to see 4am in the morning. Tony’s explanation was that he was awake so decided to do some work. What he didn’t say was that he was awake because his hip was playing up and he was better off getting up.That hip problem arose from an accident on one of his building sites, when the ladder he was on slipped and he fell quite some distance and shattered his hip. After many hours in the operating theatre they attempted to put it back together but never as good as new. But it didn’t slow him down. At the time I saw another side of Tony that most of us never saw, something of his private life. He said little about his family and his private life was just that – private. However, when I visited him in hospital that afternoon he was really struggling and the pain must have been enormous but he did his best to hide the fact. He gave me some excellent advice at the time which I’m sure was given when his guard was somewhat lowered by the pain killers. I appreciated his words but we never raised the subject again. 

Tony was never one to seek or bask in recognition of his achievements. At the time he was nominated for Life Membership of the Retirement Villages Association of Australia (the first one to achieve this recognition) Tony was not present at the event. Bruce Wallace, one of his longest serving staff, accepted the award on his behalf and gave his thanks in a prepared statement. This was typical of the man but also something we as fellow members accepted as Tony’s way of doing things. However, we did catch up with him at a State Conference soon after and suitably embarrassed him. Whenever Tony spoke at these Conferences everyone listened, he was so concise and clear in his thinking that everyone took note. 

He was an absolute gentleman, well dressed, well groomed, well spoken and adored by many. Some of the female residents of his villages had some wonderful comments about what they thought of their handsome young man who owned and ran their villages. He was a caring man who understood the needs associated with his ageing residents and did his best to cater for their needs. 

The Retirement Village Industry would not be where it is today were it not for the influence of Tony Baldwin. We all owe a debt beyond measure to this great man. Tony will be missed but we are all the better for having been part of his life and his legacy will be with us for many years to come.  

Bill Riddington - 29 June 2009