Doing Oz proud with bushfire fundraisers
Pupils said g’day to all things Australian during a fundraising extravaganza.
Children at Trottiscliffe Primary School in West Malling earned £630 to help victims of the devastating fires which have ripped through the country. During the event, last Thursday, students wore Oz-themed fancy dress and got to meet reallife scorpions and sugar gliders, which are found Down Under. They learned about the nation’s history and took part in a raffle, with one lucky pupil winning a day with a wallaby. Spare change was also brought in to create an outline of the country, displayed in the playground.
Budding children’s author and school secretary Lisa Ballards also donated the £200 profits from her first children’s book to the pot.
Mrs Ballards said: “The children have been seeing all the fires in the news. We thought ‘what can we do?’ and the children suggests loads of things. “They decided to halve the money, so half is going to the the Australian Red Cross to help the people and the other half is going to the World Wide Fund for Nature, to help the animals.” Meanwhile, a care home held a bake sale for those who lost their homes after the natural disaster. Ashley Gardens in Sutton Road, Maidstone raised nearly £150 for the Red Cross on Friday. Manager Jo Mazza said: “It really has been terrible watching the television and seeing the devastation caused by the wildfires.
“We were therefore very keen to show our support in whatever way we could.”
“I would like to extend my special thanks to our activities coordinator Lynne Lovell who baked eight delicious cakes and a batch of coconut cupcakes.”