Press Release – Southland Charity Hospital With roughly 1111 more kilometres under their belt, the drivers from the Thornbury Vintage Tractor club are ready to put their feet up. A project that has been months in the making has proved to be a successful community led fundraising event. So far, …
With roughly 1111 more kilometres under their belt, the drivers from the Thornbury Vintage Tractor club are ready to put their feet up. A project that has been months in the making has proved to be a successful community led fundraising event. So far, the tractor trek has raised an impressive $7577 for the Southland Charity Hospital. Despite their efforts, praise has been deflected to the importance of supporting a good cause. The long journey and tour of the Canterbury Charity Hospital has given the trekkers the opportunity to reflect on the importance of charitable hospitals in addressing the inequities within the healthcare system in New Zealand.
Melissa Vining and her late husband Blair Vining, from Winton, shone a light on the need for better cancer care when Blair was struck down with the illness. Melissa, who is a trustee of the charity hospital board, said fundraising initiatives that people continued to come up with was making the hospital project possible. Blair had learned to drive a tractor on a Massey Ferguson, she told the crowd of people before the tractor trek began. “He will be looking down today, smiling, probably wanting to participate.” One of the drivers, Tom Parkes, said he had always wanted to do something for the charity hospital as the service was needed in Invercargill.
The Massey Ferguson 20D that will be used for the trek.
Photo: Southland charity Hospital / Facebook
The group from Thornbury Vintage Tractor Club will set off on Sunday from Invercargill in a 1983 Massey Ferguson 20D tractor to complete the 1200 kilometre round trip to Christchurch.
The tractor trek, as its dubbed, came in response to the Southland Charity Hospital s call for donations for construction of the project.
The Thornbury Vintage Tractor Club s president, Fraser Pearce, said they floated the idea of buying a brick until one of their members came up with a better idea. One of our club members, Tom Parkes, has been tractor trekking since the 1970s and he s always wanted to do something like this. Initially as a vintage club we thought Why not support the charity hospital and buy a brick? and then Tom came up with this idea and as soon as he mentioned it I thought This is a really good idea , Pearce said.
Health system reforms: Grieving families speak out on end of postcode lottery care
21 Apr, 2021 05:00 PM
7 minutes to read
All of New Zealand s 20 District Health Boards will be replaced by one, single national health body responsible for the running of all hospitals, the Government has revealed.
All of New Zealand s 20 District Health Boards will be replaced by one, single national health body responsible for the running of all hospitals, the Government has revealed.
Emma Russell is a health reporter for the New Zealand Heraldemma.russell@nzherald.co.nz
A grieving widow whose dying husband was told to wait eight weeks for an urgent specialist assessment says she will grow old alone and her children are without a father.