Marlborough Express - Weekend Express
Grabbing groceries to raise funds
Pupils at Witherlea School have been scoping out the lolly section at New World, in Blenheim, as a new fundraiser gets underway.
Tickets are available for the first annual Witherlea School Grocery Grab, a much-needed fundraising event for the school, more than three years on from their last fundraising gala.
The ticket holder that wins first prize will have two minutes to race around the supermarket, filling a trolley with as much as they can, as long as they get one item each from the fresh meat, vegetable, fresh milk, fresh bread and frozen sections.
Witherlea School board member Maz Terpstra said the idea was the brainchild of outgoing principal Andrea Harnett, who was trying to come up with a fundraiser that would go ahead even if Covid-19 restrictions changed.
The primary school’s annual gala had not been held since March 2019, due to Covid-19 restrictions on public events. That meant the school had missed out on roughly $100,000 of funding for school operations over those three years, causing the school to run at a deficit.
Acting principal Symon Beattie said he was pleased to see the fundraiser underway, and had fielded a few questions from pupils about whether the lolly section was included in the Grocery Grab.
New World Blenheim co-owner
Greg Flannery said he knew the Grocery Grab would be a popular prize. He had run a similar competition before, although this would be his first one at the Blenheim supermarket.
‘‘They’re a lot of fun, there’s always a lot of hype around the winners. It sounded like a fantastic initiative and we’re proud to support the school.’’
The Grocery Grab will be held quite early in the morning, before the supermarket opened and ‘‘while the racetrack’s empty’’, Flannery said.
Second, third and fourth prizes were also Grocery Grabs, with shorter time limits, and if they collected less than a certain amount, the shortfall would be made up with gift vouchers. For first place, that was $1000 worth of groceries.
Terpstra said the pupils were enthusiastic ticket sellers and they were selling fast.
Each pupil was given 15 tickets to sell, and remaining tickets would be sold outside the supermarket after school over the two weeks before ticket sales end on August 19. Alternately tickets can be purchased from the school office.
The pupil who sells the most tickets will win a 30-second Grocery Grab, while there would be spot prizes and other rewards also up for grabs.
The winners will be drawn on August 24 and the Grocery Grab event will be held at 7am on August 31.