When Lady Edith von Schramek (nee Popper) arrived in South Australia in 1951, she felt a bit like she had landed on the moon. It was a completely different landscape and culture to what she and her husband, Sir Eric, were used to.
‘It was so different from Europe,’ Lady Edith says, who turns 100 in June this year. ‘We really noticed a contrast in the environment and weather, and there weren’t many places that were open at night for us to go out and eat. But everyone was so supportive, and we felt nothing but kindness from our new community.’
Both Lady Edith and Sir Eric were born in Czechoslovakia and grew up in the same neighbourhood. Lady Edith laughs that she met her husband in a sandpit.
‘We were friends as children,’ Lady Edith says. ‘He was such a good friend to my whole family.’
Their lives changed dramatically with the invasion of their country, and during World War II the pair lost touch. Lady Edith’s father was sent to Auschwitz and was sadly never heard of again. She herself was arrested and nearly died of typhoid but was later released and survived the bombing of Dresden, Germany. At the end of the war, Lady Edith was still in Germany, working at UNRRA (the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration), helping to reunite families. Working as an architect, Sir Eric was engaged in the planning and rebuilding of war-torn Nuremburg.
‘We met up again by chance and were married the next year in 1948,’ Lady Edith says.
Moving Down Under
One of Sir Eric’s bosses was Australian, and he suggested to Sir Eric that he might like to help with the planning and rebuilding of bombed Darwin.
‘We felt there was no future for us in Europe,’ Lady Edith says. ‘So, we took one of the first airlifts out of Berlin and came out to Australia on the Protea (steamer boat).’
The pair first went to the Bonegilla migrant centre, Victoria. Their papers were processed, and by December 1948 they were in Darwin and Sir Eric was ready to work.
‘We were invited to an official barbeque on Christmas Eve,’ Lady Edith says. ‘I remember that we didn’t know anyone, but that everyone seemed to know who we were. I was quite overwhelmed, but everyone showed us amazing kindness. The Brigadier’s wife even invited us to Christmas lunch at their house the next day.’
The couple stayed in Darwin for a few more years, and then moved to Adelaide, where Sir Eric began working at Gregory and Breuer Architects, before going out on his own. Sir Eric went on to design many Adelaide city landmarks including the 1965 rebuild of what was the Maugham Methodist (then Uniting) Church on Franklin Street, as well as the SGIC building in Victoria Square and Qantas House on North Terrace. He also designed and supervised the building of more than 50 other church buildings across South Australia, Australia and internationally. He was made a Knight Bachelor in 1982 for his contributions to architecture and for service to community and churches.
Architectural design for wellbeing
Lady Edith and Sir Eric’s first child, Annette, was born in 1952. Their second child, Therese, was born in 1957 and their youngest, Charles, was born in 1962. Sadly, Charles died at the age of just 42 in 2004.
Even when the children were young, Lady Edith had an interest in, and was working as, an interior designer. In 1969 she graduated from the first interior design course held in Adelaide.
‘I felt strongly that interior designers should work in close collaboration with architects from the early design stage on a project,’ Lady Edith says. ‘Office landscaping is not just putting in freestanding partitions with an old desk, filing cabinet and a few pot plants. It is a much more complex affair.’
Lady Edith says that the interior design of any building should be created with the wellbeing of the occupants front and centre.
She worked on fit outs in Adelaide such as the Bank of New South Wales, the Queensland Insurance Building, National Mutual Building and AMP Building, as well as buildings in Darwin and Hobart. She became the first woman fellow of the Industrial Design Institute of Australia as well as the President of its South Australian chapter. Between 1979 and 1984 she was a member of the South Australian Housing Trust, one of the first women welcomed to the Trust.
‘I firmly believe that women who live under stressful circumstances should have the best homes,’ Lady Edith says.
With this belief in mind, Lady Edith redesigned the interior of South Australia’s Housing Trust homes to better cater to women and their children.
‘I redesigned the homes to make sure they each had a small garden where the family could play. I also positioned the family room or kitchen at the back of the home, so that women could watch their children playing outside, while they got on with their jobs inside the house.’
Forging a career in an industry that was predominantly male at the time, Lady Edith joined the Zonta Club to promote the interests of women and empower them through advocacy.
‘I feel that women should have the opportunity for equal promotion to men,’ Lady Edith says. ‘All women should have the choice to have what I had – a satisfying job and at day's end the warmth of a family to welcome me home.'
Over the years, Lady Edith and Sir Eric travelled back to Europe on many occasions, usually to attend work conferences, but also to stay connected with family who remain there. One such visit was in the early 1970s when Lady Edith was sent as the South Australian delegate to the International Congress Society for Industrial Design in Moscow. During her career, she also taught at the South Australian Institute of Technology.
Restoring The Olives
In 1975, Sir Eric and Lady Edith were out for a drive near Yankallilla. They came across an old ruin – The Olives, built in 1840. It had been empty for the past 20 years, but with an ‘architect’s eye’, the couple saw its potential. They purchased the property from the owner and set themselves the mammoth task of restoring the home.
‘A lot of the house had absolutely collapsed,’ Lady Edith says. ‘The floors had caved in, and the ceilings had fallen down. It was really only the shell that was left.’
Over the next eight months, the couple rebuilt the home, using the building’s existing bricks to restore it to its former glory.
‘It was a challenge I must say!’ Lady Edith laughs.
The Olives became the family’s retreat, a place to relax on weekends and for holidays away from their home at Walkerville. Lady Edith and Sir Eric sold the home in 2005. It is protected under the National Trust.
Reaching 100
In 2007, Lady Edith and Sir Eric moved into their apartment at On Statenborough retirement village at Leabrook. Lady Edith has beautifully decorated the home with Venetian lithographs and illustrations by English ornithologist, John Gould.
Sadly, Sir Eric died in 2010 at the age of 89.
When reflecting on her life and fortune, Lady Edith says that she has always made the best of things.
‘I am an optimistic person by nature,’ Lady Edith says. ‘I think it is important to be kind to your friends and people around you, and to keep physically active. Exercising has an enormous impact on me mentally. It really lifts my mood.’
Fitness has been a constant in Lady Edith’s life. In Czechoslovakia, she was a first-class hockey player, and a junior tennis champion. In Australia she took up marathon running, taking part in the City to Bay and other events over the years. At On Statenborough, Lady Edith takes advantage of the pool, spa, and sauna facilities, regularly swimming four times a week.
‘It is excellent here,’ Lady Edith says. ‘The people are very nice and friendly, and the facilities are very good. I am very comfortable here in my apartment. It is amazing how fast the time goes.’
To celebrate her 100th birthday on 21 June, Edith will enjoy a family dinner, with her four grandchildren and four great-grandchildren present. She is also having an afternoon tea with friends at On Statenborough and drinks with close friends and neighbours.
Happy birthday Lady Edith! We hope you have an amazing celebration and enjoy the day with family and friends.
About Resthaven
Established in 1935, Resthaven is a South Australian not-for-profit aged care community service associated with the Uniting Church in Australia.
Every day, Resthaven shares the lives and wisdom of older people and their carers, opening doors to the full range of aged care service options available.
Services are provided throughout metropolitan Adelaide, the Adelaide Hills, Murraylands, Riverland, Fleurieu Peninsula, lower Barossa region and the Limestone Coast of South Australia.
