Vale Lin Berkmann

We are sorry to share the sad news that Lin Berkmann passed away unexpectedly on the 15th September 2025.

Dr James Skerritt has written this tribute to her:
Lin was a passionate, and sometime polarising member of the WA horse community.
Lin spent many years working at the Animal Production Group at CSIRO in Floreat Park. However her real passion was her horses and cattle. Especially her horse stud, Faberge Downs, which with her wry wit she used to describe as thoroughbred mongrels.
Being ahead of her time, and in the spirit of the great modern European breeds, she looked worldwide for proven sporting genetics to introduce to her stud.
It was one of Lin’s most treasured achievements to have a horse she bred, be ridden at Gawla, by the great West Australian rider Annabelle Taylor.
In later times her horses were much sought after in the middle east, as endurance mounts, with Sheik Al Maktoum being counted amongst the patrons of her stud. This led to greater infusions of Arabs into the Faberge Downs lines, although there were still significant (and very big) sport horse types when Lin ceased breeding.
Lin’s encyclopaedic knowledge of various stallion lines, and her eye for a good horse, were something she could discuss for hours. To anyone that wax interested. Uncharacteristically for someone of her generation, she was also miles ahead of her time in being a very skilled and gentle handler of horses.
After some major surgery in 2024, she was beginning to talk about riding again, before she passed away.

A memorial for her will be held at noon on Tuesday 14th October, at 450 Buckingham Road Jelicobine.

If you would like to add your own stories to this post, please email alumni@csiro.au