THEIR WILL … THEIR IMPACT
JOHN MITCHELL BELLAIR COLIN HENRY KEON-COHEN CMG OBE
Born 22 May 1909 , SC 1920-27 , died 27 May 2001 . John was the son of Old Boy John Berry Bellair ( SC 1897-1900 ).
John was a 1926 Prefect and 1927 School Captain . He was an agricultural scientist , expert horseman , steeplechaser , drover , farmer , grazier , shire councillor , sailor , Francophile , mountain climber and writer . John served in the AIF ( 1939-45 ) in the Greek and New Guinea campaigns , becoming a captain , and personal assistant to Lieutenant-General Sir Leslie Morshead . John left the major part of his estate to the Scotch College Foundation to establish the John Bellair Scholarship Fund . The bequest totalled $ 1.6M in 2001 and had grown to over $ 3.5M by 2021 . Since its establishment , over 50 boys have been awarded scholarships from this fund who would not otherwise have been able to attend Scotch .
Born 23 March 1907 , SC 1916-25 , died 16 January 1982 .
Colin was a member of the 1921 Athletics team , and the 1924 and 1925 1st XI . He was a 1924 Probationer , 1925 Vice Captain of Monash House , and a 1925 Prefect . A solicitor , he served in the RAF ( 1941-42 ) and RAAF ( 1942-45 ). Colin ’ s post-war passion was helping ex-servicemen , culminating in being an RSL national Vice President ( 1974-79 ) and Victorian RSL President ( 1975-79 ). He had an enduring interest in Scotch and the Old Scotch Collegians ’ Association . Colin left his entire estate of over $ 450,000 to the Scotch College Foundation Endowment Fund ( Corpus ), income from which is paid to the School annually for its general purposes . This bequest is the major contribution to the Endowment Fund ( Corpus ) which had grown to $ 19M by 2021 . The original Senior School gym , which is now the Keon-Cohen Dining Hall , is named in his honour .
BEQUESTS OF EVERY SIZE HAVE HELPED SHAPE SCOTCH .
92 90 Great Scot Issue 164 – December 2021