Friday 13 November 2015

Council staff continue fundraising efforts for Wheels for Elias

Horowhenua District Council staff will pitch in again to fundraise for the Wheels for Elias campaign with a garage sale, car wash, sausage sizzle and raffles on Saturday 21 November.

The fundraising efforts are to help a Levin family purchase a $90,000 disability-access vehicle to be able to transport 12-year-old Elias Ruruku-Hunt in his special wheelchair.

Last month $10,105 was raised from the Horowhenua Black Out Day, a District-wide mufti day organised by Council, also to show support for the All Blacks during the Rugby World Cup finals.

Saturday's fundraising activities will be held at Council's building in Oxford Street, Levin, from 9am to 1pm.

Council staff have donated a variety of items for the garage sale to be held in the basement of the building, with access from South Lane. Items include books, toys, furniture, clothes, kitchenware, irons and ironing boards, pushchairs, espresso and filter coffee machines, camping gear, kitchen grills, DVD players, mirrors, ornaments, hair care appliances and more.

People can take their car along and have Council staff wash it for only $5. Staff will also be cooking and selling sausages for $2 each.

Raffle tickets will cost $2 each, with a variety of prizes including a computer tablet from BL MicroTek, a mirror from the Kerridge Group, a sports pack from the Horowhenua Kapiti Rugby Football Union, and a vehicle Warrant of Fitness check from Jensen and Moore. Other local businesses are also supporting the fundraising activities, such as Export Meat Warehouse donating sausages and Bridgestone Tyre Centre donating car wash products.

The Ruruku-Hunt family need a new vehicle with the ability to lift and transport Elias sitting in his wheelchair. At the moment his parents have to lift him in and out of his car seat, which gets increasingly difficult as he grows.

His current 10-year-old wheelchair is due for replacement, thankfully to be funded by the Ministry of Health. However, a new wheelchair also requires a new vehicle, not covered by ACC or other Government support, and the family has exhausted every possible funding option.

Council is running the fundraiser as part of its community engagement framework and sees Council staff volunteering their time for a community project or campaign each year. Wheels for Elias was chosen as the 2015 campaign to support.

During Saturday's fundraising activities, donations will also be gratefully accepted on the day, or direct credited into Council's bank account number 02-0668-0070607-00 with "W4Elias" in the Reference field.

ENDS

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