Daffodil Day fundraising revamp comes up roses
Far North REAP once again co-ordinated this year’s Daffodil Day fundraising for the Cancer Society in the very Far North, albeit more in hope than expectation.
Plans had to change radically with the advent of Covid-19 and the changing of alert levels, which put paid to the most traditional means of raising money.
“As area co-ordinators on behalf of the Cancer Society Northland we rely on volunteers to collect, but with all the uncertainty we made the call two weeks before to cancel the street collection,” Lisa Jones said.
“Our priority was the safety and health of our Far North REAP team and our volunteers.
“Thinking outside the box, we decided on online donations and raffle selling, and in true Far North style our community responded in droves. We raised $7398, and were absolutely blown away.”
The “mega raffle” was won by the Kaitaia Motorcycles team, who supported the cause every year without fail.
“We thank all the local sponsors of the raffle, Jo Buckingham for getting them all on board again, and the police for drawing it,” Lisa said.
“The excited winner of the online quilt auction was Marlene Sexton; the beautiful quilt was made and donated by a local cancer survivor who wishes to remain anonymous.
“Krystal Rose Taaffe and Eileen Rogers ran the epic baby photo competition, and raised a phenomenal $11,436. A great result with a lot of mahi that went on behind the scenes. Thanks to all the wha¯ nau who participated.”
She also thanked Kaitaia College, Te Hiku Hauora, BP Awanui, the “Daffodil Lady” who grew daffodils every year, Laser Electrical and Kaita¯ ia Pak’nSave for their collections and enthusiastic support “in these unusual times,” and the numerous community groups outside the Kaita¯ ia area who also contributed.
“The blue donation boxes were worth their weight in gold, and we thank all the businesses that allowed us to place them in their shops,” she said.
“All in all a great result, considering, with a total of $18,834 raised. With your help there is hope.”