We are an active incorporated Chamber of Commerce formed in 1924 by the then mayor of Bexley Municipality, Alderman FS Stephens. We adopt the model constitution of the Associations Incorporations Regulation 2016 which can be viewed by clicking here.
We assist in business development and cross promotion and lobby local and state government in matters of village infrastructure and maintenance.
Our proudest achievement was helping to raise $650,000 to establish the Bexley Community Bank Branch of Bendigo Bank. Our bank opened in 2004 at a time when all other financial institutions deserted Bexley.
Past Presidents of Note
We are currently researching the history of the Bexley Chamber of Commerce and will update this website as information comes to hand. Two presidents that stand out are John Francis McGrath and Beverley Scott.
John Francis McGrath (1 September 1893 – 20 December 1971) was an Australian politician and a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, representing the electorate of Rockdale, from 1941 until 1959.
He was born in Chicago, the son of a publican and migrated with his family to Australia at age nine. McGrath leased the Bexley Hotel, now known as the Forest Inn, in the 1930’s and became a proprietor of other hotels in the Bexley area.
He was active in many community organisations and president of the Bexley Chamber of Commerce from 1936 until 1970. He was also elected as an alderman on the Bexley Municipal Council in 1937 serving until 1944.
Further details of his qualifications, occupations and interests can be seen on NSW Parliament website by clicking here.
John Francis McGrath by all accounts led a full and active life. His entrepreneurial spirit lives on in his grandson John McGrath who in 1988 founded the McGrath real estate company.
Beverley Scott (4 May 1934 – 7 May 2023) was a pharmacist with a strong interest in the Bexley business community. Beverley established Scott’s Pharmacy in 1959 on Forest Road Bexley joining the Bexley Chamber of Commerce soon after. She went on to serve as Vice President from 1976 to 1986 and then President until 2006.
With the backing of the Chamber of Commerce, Beverley was the main instigator in the campaign to establish a Community Bank in Bexley at a time when all the big banks had left Bexley. She was chairman of the steering committee during the three years of promotion and fund raising which culminated in the opening of the bank in 2004. She was the inaugural Vice-Chairman of the company which operates the bank.
But perhaps Beverley’s greatest achievement was to keep the Bexley Chamber of Commerce alive and active, sometimes under some very difficult circumstances. While other Chambers of Commerce came and went, Beverley managed to hold the Bexley Chamber of Commerce together and deal with the different challenges that faced the business community over the years.
Beverley is survived by her loving husband of 64 Years, Fred Scott, as well as 3 sons, 13 grandchildren and 13 great grandchildren.