Starship’s Big Egg Hunt Hatches Again

Some eggs from 2015 The Big Egg Hunt. Photo Credit: Logan West.

While You Were Sleeping….
Starship’s Big Egg Hunt Hatches Again

While Kiwis were sleeping, 100 giant eggs created by New Zealand artists were hidden across the country in the early hours of this morning*, ready to be discovered as part of The Whittaker’s Big Egg Hunt in support of Starship.

The works of art secretly popped up in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch overnight, allowing the public to take part in the hunt from today until 7 April. Artists who have created eggs include Askew One, Dean Proudfoot, Dick Frizzell, Flox, Keven Mealamu, Mervyn Williams, Misery, Reuben Paterson, Rod Emmerson, WORLD and Zambesi.

The Whittaker’s Big Egg Hunt will raise funds for the Starship Foundation, a social-profit organisation which supports the national children’s hospital to provide world-leading care for more than 120,000 patient visits each year.

The Whittaker’s Big Egg Hunt (www.thebigegghunt.co.nz) not only offers great family entertainment hunting for the eggs, but also the opportunity to compete for prizes – four gold Whittaker’s Wabbit necklaces designed and crafted by Partridge Jewellers, as well as many great spot prizes including cuddly Whittaker Wabbit soft toys and delicious chocolate treats and prizes. To enter to win hunters need to download Whittaker’s high spec mobile app (details at www.thebigegghunt.co.nz/app).

As Principal Sponsor, Whittaker’s is committed to contributing at least $150,000 to the Starship Foundation through the sales of its top-selling Creamy Milk block, which features a special wrapper designed by a child of a Starship family.

The Big Egg Hunt concept first came about in London in 2012 to engage the public in a fun and interactive way while fundraising for charity. Since then The Big Egg Hunt has grown to include Dublin, New York and New Zealand. It is believed to be the biggest egg hunt of its kind worldwide.

All 100 eggs, each a unique masterpiece, will be auctioned off for Starship – 80 of them on Trade Me at trade.me/bigegghuntnz, and 20 of them at a gala event on 31 March in Auckland.

Starship Foundation Chief Executive Brad Clark says, “The Whittaker’s Big Egg Hunt in support of Starship is fun and engaging for all ages with vibrant, creative and valuable works of art. The Big Egg Hunt is special for Starship to connect children and families with the art world and introduces new audiences to the magic of our national children’s hospital. We urge everyone to get out and see these fantastic creations and even better, consider bidding on your very own egg to take home!”

Whittaker’s Marketing Manager Holly Whittaker says, “We’re proud to be the Principal Sponsor of the Whittaker’s Big Egg Hunt again in 2015 after a successful launch last year.

“We’re a family-owned New Zealand company that is proud to support worthy causes such as Starship that make such a difference to New Zealanders’ lives, and we’ll be doing everything we can to ensure it raises as much awareness and money as possible for the charity again this year including providing our free mobile app for hunters,” says Ms Whittaker.

Information about The Whittaker’s Big Egg Hunt is at www.thebigegghunt.co.nz and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/BigEggHuntNZ.

ENDS

*Editor’s Note: Footnote refers to early hours of 12 March

Key Dates:
• Before dawn 12 March: 100 giant eggs secretly hidden in locations in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch
• 12 March – 7 April: The Whittaker’s Big Egg Hunt – New Zealand public out and about searching for 100 giant eggs created by Kiwi artists and designers.
• 12 March – 7 April: 80 of the eggs auctioned on Trade Me for Starship (bidding via thebigegghunt.co.nz or trade.me/bigegghuntnz)
• 31 March: Gala auction of 20 eggs in support of Starship

Supporters of The Whittaker’s Big Egg Hunt:
In addition to the very generous artists who have provided their time and talent to decorate the eggs, many organisations are supporting the campaign in various ways. These include:

• Air New Zealand
• Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki
• Auckland War Memorial Museum
• Barfoot & Thompson, Starship Five Star Partner
• Britomart Group
• Christchurch City Council
• Colourworx
• Animal Planet
• DFS Galleria
• ECC
• Firth
• Les Mills Britomart
• Mainfreight
• Manuka Doctor Skincare
• New Zealand Maritime Museum
• The New Zealand Herald
• The Moving Company
• Precinct Properties
• Queen’s Arcade
• Republik
• Resene
• SKYCITY
• SKY TV
• Trade Me
• Vector Arena
• Victoria Park Market
• Waterfront Auckland
• Wellington City Council
• Whittaker’s, Principal Campaign Sponsor
About the Starship Foundation:
• Starship is New Zealand’s national children’s hospital. There are more than 120,000 patient visits to Starship Children’s Health every year by children from all over New Zealand.
• The Starship Foundation is a social-profit organisation that raises funds so Starship Children’s Health can better care for its young patients. The Starship Foundation aims to create meaningful and magical opportunities that enrich the health of every young New Zealander.
• The Starship Foundation raises up to $10 million a year. Donations are extra to Government funding and provide for initiatives such as Starship’s National Air Ambulance Service which brings children from all over New Zealand to Starship for life-saving care, as well as refurbishing older wards, new technology and medical equipment, vital research, boosted family support, staff training and community outreach projects to keep children out of hospital.
About Whittaker’s:
• Established in New Zealand over 100 years ago, Whittaker’s is the only major chocolate manufacturer in New Zealand that ensures quality by controlling the whole manufacturing process – from bean to bar.
• With 100% of its operations in New Zealand, Whittaker’s is proud to be an exporter of quality New Zealand produce, as well as one of the largest employers in the Wellington region.
• For the past three years in a row, Whittaker’s has been voted New Zealand’s Most Trusted Brand and for the past two year has been voted Colmar Brunton’s Most Loved Brand.

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